The Sister Code
by elang4
Summary: Lorelai had twin girls, Rory and Olivia. This begins at the beginning of season 1 but it has a twist. They have known Luke and Jess most of their time in Stars Hollow. Jess went to live with Luke a lot earlier than in the show so Rory, Olivia and Jess have basically grown up together and are very close friends. Follow them through the series. Possible literati and definite JJ.
1. Chapter 1

**You will probably hate me for starting another story but I felt like my last one wasn't really getting the reception I had hoped for which demotived me a bit! But I got this idea and I was hoping it might get a better reception. :) I hope you all like it!**

 **So basically it's another twin story but with a twist. Lorelai had twin girls but I promise it will be completely different to my previous twin story. Lorelai has twin girls, Rory and Olivia, but in this they have known Luke and Jess most of their time in Stars Hollow. Jess went to live with Luke when he was a lot younger so Rory, Olivia and Jess basically grew up together and are very close. This will start at the beginning of season 1 and will follow them through the series. It will probably be a literati (to be honest, I might see how it goes in that respect but that's my intial idea) and definitely a javajunkie.**

 **I hope you enjoy! :)**

Chapter 1

Lorelai was smiling to herself sipping her coffee, sat at Luke's, watching a guy who had just hit on her go up to the counter. She looked up as the diner door opened and her face lit up. "Hi!" She smiled.

"Hey!" Rory smiled sitting down with her.

"It's freezing out there!" Olivia said, sitting down. "Hey Jess, get us some doughnuts?" She grinned at their best friend as he headed for the counter.

"Your wish is my command." Jess said dryly, giving her a mock salute.

"Thanks!" Olivia grinned.

"So what do you need?" Lorelai asked them. "Hot tea, coffee?"

"Lip gloss." Rory said.

"Aha!" Lorelai said pulling out her makeup bag. "Vanilla, chocolate, strawberry or toasted marshmallow?" She said.

"Anything in there not resembling a breakfast cereal?" Olivia smirked.

"Yes!" She said pulling out another bag. "It has no smell but it changes colours with your mood." She grinned.

"God, RuPaul doesn't have this much makeup." Rory said.

"Wow, someone's crabby." Lorelai said.

"I'm sorry. I lost my Macy Gray cd and I need caffeine." Rory said.

"I might have your cd." Olivia admitted sheepishly.

"Thief!" Rory exclaimed.

"Sorry." She smirked. "Oooh look doughnuts!" She said as Jess put a plate infront of them and joined them at the table.

"It's a good thing I like you." Rory joked.

"I'll get you girls some coffee." Lorelai grinned, heading up to the counter. "Hey Luke!" She grinned.

"You're shameless." Luke said.

"What? It's for Rory and Olivia! I swear!" Lorelai said.

"Uh huh.." Luke said.

"Look, Officer Krupke, they're at that table right over there!" Lorelai said turning round and seeing the same guy who had hit on her at the table again. "Huh. He's got quite a pair, this guy." Lorelai said. "Thanks." She said taking the coffee and heading back to the table.

"Yeah, I've never been through here before." The guy was saying.

"Really?" Olivia said.

"Never." He said glancing at Jess. "Boyfriend?" He asked.

"That would be wrong." Olivia smirked.

"Thanks." Jess said dryly.

"So how about you girls show me around? I don't know the area very well." He said.

"Oh, you do too." Lorelai smiled sweetly.

"Oh, hi." The guy said surprised.

"Hi. You really like my table, don't you?" She said.

"I was just..uh.."

"Getting to know my daughters?" She said.

"Your...?" He said shocked.

"Are you our new daddy?" Olivia grinned.

"Wow. You do not look old enough to have daughters. No, I mean it. And you do not look like daughters." The guy rambled.

"That's possibly very sweet of you. Thanks." Lorelai said.

"So...daughters...You know, I am travelling with some friends." He said.

"They're fifteen." Lorelai said.

"Bye." He said quickly.

"Drive safe." Lorelai smirked. "Hey, you're meant to protect my daughters from guys like him!" She told Jess.

"We all know you three can handle yourself." Jess said.

"He's right, mom. We had it." Rory laughed.

* * *

Rory, Olivia and Lane were walking to school when Lane puts a Woodstock '99 shirt on over the shirt she left home in.

"When are you going to let your parents know that you listen to the evil rock music? You're an American teenager, for god's sake." Olivia said.

"Liv, if my parents still get upset over the obscene portion size of American food, I seriously doubt I'm going to make any inroads with Eminem." Lane said.

"Fair point." Olivia smirked slightly as they passed a sign for a 'Teen Hayride'.

"I have to go to that." Lane told them.

"Seriously?" Rory said.

"My parents set me up with the son of a business associate. He's going to be a doctor." Lane said.

"How old is he?" Rory asked.

"Sixteen."

"So he's going to be a doctor in a hundred years?" Olivia joked.

"Well, my parents like to plan ahead." She said.

"God, you have to go to the hayride with him?" Rory asked.

"And his older brother."

"You've got to be kidding!" Olivia said.

"Koreans never joke about future doctors. So, I guess you two aren't going, huh?"

"No, I'm still fuzzy on what's fun about sitting in the cold for two hours with a bundle of sticks up your butt." Rory said.

"Don't expect me to clear it up for you." Lane sighed as they walked into the school, Olivia noticing a boy watching them as they did.

* * *

"Well, was it a good colour at least?" Lane asked as they headed home after their day at school.

"It had sparkles in it." Rory said.

"Wow." Lane said.

"And it smelled like bubble gum when it dried." Olivia smirked.

"Oh, well, there's no way Mark Twain can compete with that." Lane joked. "See you!" She said waving at them as she headed inside her house.

"Bye!" Rory smiled.

"Bye!" Olivia said and then the two sisters headed to the inn to meet up with their mom.

They went into the kitchen where they found their mom and Sookie giggling.

"Hi mom!" Rory said.

"Oh!" Lorelai said hiding a bag behind her back.

"You look happy." Olivia said glancing between them.

"Yeah." Lorelai nodded, beaming.

"Did you do something slutty?" Olivia joked.

"I'm not that happy." Lorelai giggled. She saw her daughters giving her a confused look so she handed the bag over to them. "Here." She said.

"What is it?" Rory asked picking out a plaid skirt from inside the bag. "I'm going to be in a Britney Spears video?" She joked.

Olivia glanced at the skirt and then it dawned on her. "Mom?" She said surprised.

"It's true." Lorelai nodded. "You got in. You both got in."

"Got in where?" Rory said confused.

"We got into Chilton?" Olivia exclaimed. "Seriously?"

"Seriously." Lorelai nodding, smiling. "You're starting on Monday."

"Oh my god! We got in?" Rory exclaimed excitedly. "Liv, we got in!"

"I heard!" Olivia grinned.

"I don't believe this! We're going to Chilton!" Rory grinned.

"I know!" Olivia grinned. "We've got to go tell Jess, come on!"

"Right behind you!" Rory grinned following her sister out.

They suddenly ran back in and launched themselves at their mom. "We love you, mom." Olivia said.

"I love you too. And I'm so proud of you both." Lorelai smiled softly. She watched them grin at her and then rush out to spread the good news. She glanced at her best friend. "They're going to Chilton, Sook." She said.

"They're going to do great." Sookie smiled.

Meanwhile, Rory and Olivia rushed into the diner. "Jess, we did it! We got in!" Olivia exclaimed.

"Did what?" Jess said looking up from behind the counter.

"Chilton! We got in! We're starting on Monday!" Rory grinned.

"Oh." Jess said.

"Wow, that's great news! Congratulations!" Luke smiled having overheard them.

"Thanks Luke!" Olivia grinned.

"Isn't that great news?" He said to Jess.

"Sure." He nodded. "I..uh..I've got some homework to do." He said before disappearing upstairs.

"Ok, what's up with him?" Rory said confused.

"No idea." Olivia frowned, glancing at Luke.

"Don't ask me." Luke said. "You girls want some burgers to celebrate?" He asked.

"Yes please!" Rory smiled.

"Sounds good." Olivia smiled, glancing towards the stairs as Luke headed to the kitchen.

* * *

Olivia glanced up to see Jess leaving the classroom quickly the following day. She frowned. He normally waited for her so they could walk home together. She packed up her stuff quickly and ran after him. "Jess, wait!" She said. "Jess!"

"What?" Jess said finally stopping.

"What is your problem?" Olivia demanded. "You've been avoiding us since we told you about Chilton! What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He grumbled.

"It's obviously not nothing!" Olivia said.

"Just leave it." He said, starting to walk again.

"Jess!" Olivia exclaimed following after him but nearly bumped into him when he stopped suddenly. "What the..Jess!"

"Look." Jess said nodding ahead.

Olivia followed his gaze to see Rory standing and chatting with the guy she had noticed watching them the other day. "Huh..." She said as she watched her sister stumble over her words. "Looks like someone has a crush." She joked.

"You think she likes him?" Jess said.

"Oh it's obvious!" Olivia laughed.

"He doesn't seem like her type." He said.

Olivia glanced at him. "What?" She laughed.

"Never mind. I need to get back for my shift." Jess mumbled.

"Jess, wait!" Olivia said. "What's going on?"

"Nothing!" He exclaimed. He saw the hurt in Olivia's face and sighed. "Look, I'll see you later ok?"

"Ok." She said quietly. She watched him walked off, totally confused with how he was acting.

"What's his problem?" Lane asked walking up to her.

"I have no idea." She sighed.

"Wanna walk home together?" Lane smiled.

Olivia saw Rory start to walk off with the guy she had been talking to so nodded. "Sure." She smiled.

* * *

Olivia walked into the diner later that day to grab some takeout for their dinner. She saw Jess behind the counter and slowly walked up to him. "Hey..." She said hesitantly.

He looked up at her. "Hey." He said.

"Uh..can I get three burgers and three portions of fries to take out?" She said.

"Coming up." Jess nodded, putting the order through to Luke who was in the kitchen.

Olivia glanced at him. "Are we ok?" She asked.

Jess sighed. "I'm sorry I snapped. I didn't mean to." He said.

"It's ok." She said. "So are you going to tell me what's wrong?"

"I'm fine." Jess said.

"Right..." Olivia sighed.

"Seriously, she's still hanging out with him?" Jess said.

"Who?" Olivia frowned following his gaze. She saw Rory outside with Dean. "Oh..yeah. She's been giving him a tour. He's new apparently."

"Sure, and that's all he wants from her." Jess grumbled.

"Ok, what is your problem?" Olivia demanded.

"Nothing!"

"I don't believe you!"

"Well fine, don't believe me then!" He snapped.

"So much for being sorry." Olivia frowned.

"Will you two take this upstairs please?" Luke told them. "You're causing a scene." He said gesturing to the customers who were watching them.

"Forget it! There's nothing to discuss." Jess grumbled before storming upstairs.

"Oh no, you're not getting away that easily!" Olivia snapped following him upstairs. "Why are you being such a jerk?" She demanded.

"I said it's nothing! Why won't you leave me alone?" He exclaimed.

"Because I know you, Jess! I know when something's bothering you!" Olivia exclaimed.

"Well you won't have to bother with me for much longer! You'll be at that posh school, won't you?" He snapped.

"This is what this is all about?" Olivia said shocked. "Us going to Chilton?"

"No..." Jess mumbled.

"Jess, you knew we were applying there. We told you that you should as well..."

"I'm not as smart as you two. I'd never get in." Jess said.

"You're just as smart as us." Olivia told him.

"Yeah well, it's too late now! I don't want to go to that stupid school anyway." He said. "You go and make friends with rich guys and Rory can go out with that jerk from our school. Go, live your lives. See if I care."

"What is your problem with Rory and Dean?" She exclaimed.

"Dean?"

"Yeah, that's his name." She said.

"Huh."

"Why are you being so weird? We'll always be friends, you know that! You think I'd just dump you if I make other friends? Because if you think that, you really don't know me at all." She said hurt.

Jess glanced at her. "Sorry." He mumbled.

"Jess, you're so important to me and Rory. You know that right?" Olivia said.

Jess glanced at her again and sighed. "Yeah. Sorry."

"Good. Because we're going to be friends forever. Unless you don't want to be." She said.

"No. I want to." He said.

"Good. So...this is resolved then? You'll stop being a jerk?" Olivia said, smiling slightly.

Jess smirked slightly. "Yeah...sorry." He said sheepishly. "Although Rory will probably be too into this new guy to bother with me anymore."

Olivia frowned. "She's not like that."

"He won't want her hanging out with another guy when they start dating." Jess said.

"When they start dating? What?" Olivia said confused.

"Well you said it was obvious she liked him. And he probably wants that too. Who could blame him?" He shrugged.

"Why does it matter who she decides to date?"

"I just don't think he's good enough for her." He said.

"You don't even know him!" She laughed.

"Neither do you." He pointed out.

"Ok, you're being weird again." She said. "What, are you jealous or something?" She joked. She saw him avoid her gaze for a moment. "Oh my god..." She said.

"What?" He mumbled.

"You are! You're jealous!" She exclaimed.

"No I'm not." Jess denied.

"I can't believe I'm hearing this..." Olivia said shocked. "You...and Rory? Seriously?"

"What's so weird about it?" He demanded.

"So it's true." She snapped.

"I don't know, ok? I just know that guy isn't good enough for her. She deserves the best!" He exclaimed.

"Sounds like you do know." She frowned. "I...I have to go."

"Liv wait!" He said.

"Why? We promised each other! We had a pact! We agreed...no dating each other. It would ruin our friendship!" Olivia exclaimed.

"That was years ago when we all thought that even the thought of kissing someone was gross!" Jess said.

"So you've thought about kissing Rory?" Olivia demanded.

"No..."

"I don't believe you." She shook her head. "I don't believe this! We all agreed! Why her, Jess?"

"I can't help how I feel alright? It's not my fault!" He exclaimed. "Why are you getting so freaked out about it?"

"Ok what if you two do end up dating huh? And what if something goes wrong? We'd never get to hang out again! Is that what you want?" She said.

"We'd still hang out." He frowned.

"Really? Even though you and Rory would be fighting all the time? I'd have to take Rory's side, you know that right? She's my sister, Jess! Urghh...why does this have to be happening?!" She exclaimed. "I can't believe you would sacrifice our friendship for this!"

"What is your real problem here?" Jess frowned. "Are you really concerned about something going wrong between me and Rory or do you just not want me to like Rory that like?" He demanded.

"What do you mean?" She frowned.

"Are you jealous that I like Rory like that and not you? So you want to sabotage my chance at happiness because of that? You just don't want me to be with anyone so that I can be at your beck and call every minute of the day. Because that's just selfish!" He said spitefully.

Olivia stared at him, hurt. "I can't believe you would even think that..." She said quietly.

"Liv..."

"No, don't you dare 'Liv' me! I...I should go." She said.

"Liv wait!" Jess sighed.

"Screw you, Jess! You know what, do what you want! I don't care anymore! If our friendship really means that little to you, then fine." She snapped, blinking back tears, as she headed towards the door.

"Liv..." He tried again.

"Go to hell!" She snapped before rushing out.

* * *

"Hey..." A voice said.

Olivia looked up from the porch swing that was on the patio at the front of their house and smiled softly. "Hey..."

"Are you ok?" Rory asked softly.

"I'm fine." She sighed.

"Eventful night, huh?" She said.

"You could say that again." Olivia sighed.

"I still can't believe mom went to them for money..." Rory said quietly.

Olivia glanced at her. "I guess she just really wanted us to get to go to Chilton. She knew how much it meant to us." She said.

"Yeah.." Rory said quietly. "I...I can't believe I nearly threw that away for some guy..."

"We all do stupid things. Don't worry about it. You've seen sense now." She said, smirking slightly.

Rory smiled slightly. She glanced at her sister who still looked down. She had noticed it over the past few days. "Are you going to tell me what happened between you and Jess?" She said hesitantly.

"What?" She said surprised.

"Oh come on, you've been avoiding each other for days now. He won't even speak to me that much. It's like he's avoiding me. What's going on?" Rory said.

Olivia sighed. "It's nothing."

"It doesn't seem like nothing." Rory said cautiously. "I've never seen you this upset over a fight."

"You...don't want to know, trust me." She said.

Rory glanced at her. "You guys will make up though right? I miss our daily catch up. You know, discussing all the gossip around school, teasing Jess over Luke, chatting about books..."

Olivia smiled slightly. "Yeah...I miss that too." She admitted.

"Well then...surely it's not so bad you can't make up? Is it about us going to Chilton? Is he mad we're not going to go to the same school as him? Because nothing will change between us. He knows that right? We love him." Rory said softly.

"You love him?" Olivia said her head whipped up.

"Well...don't we both?" Rory said confused. "He's our friend. Our best friend."

"Oh..yeah." Olivia said.

"Then make up. I know how much he means to you. I hate seeing you so upset about this." She said. "And...it looks like he feels the same." She said.

"What?" She said confused.

"Look..." Rory said gesturing to where Jess was hovering on the driveway. "Looks like someone wants to make things right. Just...at least hear him out." She said softly. "I know Jess can be infuriating but he's a good friend. And good friends are hard to come by."

Olivia just nodded and watched as Jess slowly walked towards her.

"Hey..." He said hesitantly.

"Hi." She said.

"Mind if I sit?" He asked.

"It's a free country." She commented.

Jess sighed and sat down next to her. "I'm sorry." He said.

"About what? There's so much to choose from." She retorted.

"Ok, I deserved that." He said.

Olivia glared at him. "So?"

"I'm sorry. For everything." Jess said. "I didn't mean it. I was angry and I...took it out on you."

"I didn't deserve it." She said quietly.

"No. You didn't." He said. He sighed. "You were right. Our friendship means too much for me to jeopardise it." He said.

Olivia glanced at him. "You mean that?" She said quietly. "But I thought you said..."

"I can put any feelings I may or may not have aside. I don't want to lose you. You and Rory have kept me sane since I moved here. I don't want to ruin what we have." He said sincerely.

"You'd really do that?"

"Do what?"

"Put your feelings aside? Just like that?" Olivia said.

"For you? Yeah." He nodded.

"So...you'd be ok watching Rory date other people then? You'd be able to deal with it?" She said hesitantly.

"I don't know. But I guess we'll find out." Jess said. He sighed. "Look, since hearing you got into Chilton, I guess...well I guess I felt like I was going to lose my friends. We won't get to see each other everyday at school. We won't get to see each other as much as we did. And I guess...well I guess I freaked out about that and that..well, it made me act like a jerk. So I'm sorry." He said.

Olivia sighed. "You know, I'm going to miss having my partner in crime as well. Chilton is an amazing school but I am worried I won't fit in. That I won't make any friends." She admitted.

"You'll be fine." Jess assured her.

"How do you know?"

"Because I know you. And people would be a fool not to want to be your friend." He said softly.

Olivia glanced at him and smiled slightly. "I've missed you." She admitted.

"I've missed you too." He said. "You're going to take Chilton by storm. And if anyone gives you a hard time, send them to me." He said.

"Aw, you big softy." Olivia teased, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"Yeah and you tell anyone, our friendship really is over." He smirked.

"Duly noted." She grinned. She smiled at him. "Want to join us for our movie night?" She asked softly.

"If you're sure?" He said.

"Of course. I know Rory will be pleased to see we've made up. She's been bugging me about it." Olivia smiled slightly.

"You didn't say anything...?"

"No! No, I didn't say anything." She assured him. "She doesn't know anything."

"Ok." He said relieved.

Olivia glanced at him. "You don't have to join us if you don't want to...It's up to you."

Jess glanced at her and smirked. "You think I'd miss a Gilmore movie night? Think again, Gilmore." He said.

Olivia laughed. "Come on then."

"Lead the way." He said.

Olivia grinned and headed inside. Jess watched her for a moment, took a deep breath before slowly following her.

 **So I hope you liked it! Let me know if you'd like me to continue! :) I've got lots of ideas for this so I'm hoping it will be a hit with you all. Please let me know what you think by reviewing and thank you for your continued support! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for your support! Do let me know if you're following this and would like me to keep going. :)**

Chapter 2

"So, why are we doing this?" Olivia asked as she painted her sister's toenails.

"Because as mom has pointed out, we're starting private school tomorrow." Rory said.

"Yes, but we'll be wearing shoes. Nobody's going to see our feet." Olivia pointed out.

"Apparently bad girls always wear red nail polish." Rory smirked.

"Ah of course." Olivia smirked. She glanced up at her sister. "Are you nervous?" She asked.

"A little." Rory admitted. "Are you?"

"A little as well." Olivia said. "I'm going to miss Lane and Jess a lot."

"Yeah, it's going to be weird without them." Rory sighed.

Olivia sighed. She glanced at her sister. "At least we've got each other right? We can stick together and face these bad girls together." She said smirking slightly.

Rory laughed. "Sounds like a plan."

"Guys, guys! New cd - XTC, Apple Venus Volume 2!" Lane exclaimed rushing past them on the patio.

"Oh cool!" Rory exclaimed getting up and rushing after Lane.

"You'll ruin your nails!" Olivia called.

"Who cares? I'm going to be wearing shoes anyway!" Rory called.

Olivia rolled her eyes and carefully got up before following them inside.

* * *

"Hey Luke! Can I get three lots of pancakes to go?" Olivia smiled sitting down at the counter at the diner.

"Sure." He nodded. "Isn't today your first day at Chilton?" He asked.

"Yep. But mom woke up late and Rory's freaking out so I figured it would be helpful to get food to eat on the way." Olivia said.

Luke chuckled. "Sounds sensible." He said. "You nervous?" He asked.

"A bit." Olivia admitted. "Everyone there is going to be so smart and they'll already know each other." She said.

"You'll do great." Luke assured her.

"You think?" She said quietly, glancing up at him.

"I know." He smiled softly at her.

"Thanks Luke." She said softly. "Hey, is Jess still upstairs?" She asked.

"Do you honestly think he'd get to school early?" Luke raised his eyebrows.

Olivia smirked. "Fair point." She laughed. "Do you mind if I head up there while I wait?"

"Of course not. You're always welcome. You know that." He said.

"Thanks Luke." She smiled getting up and heading upstairs.

* * *

After a surprise appearance from their grandmother, a talk with Headmaster Charleston and receiving their timetables, Olivia and Rory were sat in class listening to the teacher.

"And while French culture was the dominant outside cultural influence, especially for Russia's monied class, English culture also had its impact. Tolstoy's favourite author, for instance, was..." The teacher said.

Olivia watched as a blonde haired girl put her hand up and answered the question. She then proceeded to do so several other times in quick succession. "Intense or what?" She whispered to Rory.

"Shh.." Rory said.

Olivia rolled her eyes but went back to listening to the teacher. Suddenly a blonde haired guy walked in.

"Ah, Mr. Dugrey." The teacher greeted him.

"Sir." The guy said handing him a note.

"Nice to have you back. I hope your grandfather's better." The teacher said.

"Much better, sir." He nodded.

"Good. Take your seat, please." He said.

Olivia caught his eye as he walked past them and felt her face reddening. She tried to refocus on what the teacher was saying but she could hear him talking behind her.

"Who's that?"

"New girl."

"Looks like we got ourselves a Mary."

Olivia frowned but didn't have time to think about it as the teacher finished the lesson and called her and Rory up to the desk.

"Here are last week's study materials." He told them handing them both a huge binder. "There'll be a test on them tomorrow but since you're new, you can take a makeup on Monday. Will that be sufficient time?" He said.

"Monday?" Olivia exclaimed.

"Is that a problem?" He said.

"No." Rory said quickly giving Olivia a look. "It's fine."

"Good. That's just an overview. It would be very helpful to you to borrow one of the other student's personal notes. They tend to be more detailed." He told them.

"More detailed than this?" Olivia said.

"It seems daunting right now, I know." He smiled sympathetically.

"No, it's okay. It'll be fine." Rory said.

"Remember to get those notes. They'll be a lifesaver." He said.

Olivia and Rory left the classroom. "Seriously? Monday?" Olivia exclaimed.

"It'll be fine." Rory said.

"Yeah, says the person who aces every test she does." She said.

Rory sighed. "Look, we'll study together ok? We'll be fine."

Olivia sighed. "Fine." She said just as they bumped into the blonde haired girl from their class. "Oh...hi..."

"I'm Paris." She said.

"Hi." Olivia replied.

"I know who you both are, too. Lorelai and Olivia Gilmore from Stars Hollow." She said.

"You can call me Rory." Rory said.

"Are you going out for the Franklin?" She asked ignoring her.

"The what?" Rory said.

"Nice innocent act. At least I know you're not going out for drama club." She retorted.

"I'm confused."

"The Franklin, the school paper, are you going out for it?" Paris said.

"I don't know, I have to find my locker first." Rory said.

"So what if she is?" Olivia said.

"I'm going to be editor next year." She said.

"Well, good for you." Olivia said.

"I'm also the top of the class and I intend to be valedictorian when I graduate." Paris said.

"Wow." Olivia said sarcastically.

"You'll never catch up. You'll never beat me. This school is my domain and the Franklin is my domain. And don't you ever forget that." She said before walking off.

"See, what did I say? Intense!" Olivia said.

Rory smirked slightly. "Guess she's not going to let us borrow her notes, huh?"

Olivia laughed. "Not likely." She said. "Come on, let's find our lockers." She said.

* * *

Olivia was walking down the hallway later that day when she heard someone calling behind her.

"Hey! Mary!" The voice called.

She turned round to see the blonde haired guy from their first class chasing after her. "My name's Olivia." She said.

"I prefer Mary." He smirked.

"Yeah but I know what you mean by calling me that and frankly, it's offensive." Olivia retorted.

"But I bet it's true." He grinned.

"Bye." Olivia rolled her eyes, starting to walk away.

"I'm Tristan by the way." He said, not giving up, chasing after her.

"Ok?" Olivia said.

"You haven't said hi yet. Isn't it polite to say hi when someone talks to you?" He smirked.

"And it's also polite to call someone by their actual name and not a gross nickname." Olivia said.

"Ok. Hey Olivia, I'm Tristan." He said seriously.

"You're a jerk." She retorted.

"And you're Olivia! See I do listen!" He grinned.

Olivia smirked slightly. "Is there anything in particular you wanted or...?"

"You're new right?" He said.

"Yeah, it's mine and my sister's first day." She said.

"Well, Remmy's class is rough." Tristan said.

"Yeah, it seemed very intense."

"You know, I could loan you my notes if that would help." He offered.

"Yeah, and what's the catch?" Olivia looked at him suspiciously.

"No catch." He said.

"Right..." She said.

"Hey, I'm just trying to be nice." He said putting his hands up. "But if you don't want the notes..." He said starting to walk off.

"I never said that." She said, smirking slightly.

"I'm only trying to be a good citizen. Helping my fellow students out." Tristan said.

"Sure you are." Olivia said dryly. "But ok. Thanks. Borrowing your notes would be great actually. I've been worrying about the amount of work we have to catch up on." She admitted.

"Well...I could even help you study if you want." He said.

"Ah there we go, I knew there was a catch." Olivia laughed.

"What? I'm just being nice!" He grinned.

"Uh huh." She smirked.

"So what do you say?"

"I kind of promised my sister that I'd study with her. Sorry." She said.

"Well if you change your mind, you know where to find me." Tristan said. "See you around, Mary!" He smirked.

"It's Olivia!" She called after her.

"I prefer Mary." He grinned before walking off.

Olivia just shook her head as Rory caught up with her. "Who was that?" Rory asked.

"Tristan." She said. "He offered to lend us his notes."

"Really?" She said. "That's good."

"Hmm..." Olivia said.

"What?" Rory said.

"Oh, nothing. He's just...never mind, it doesn't matter." She smiled. "Let's go get some lunch." She said.

* * *

Lorelai entered the diner just as Luke was passing. "What are you doing here?" He asked.

"See, now, that's why you were voted Mr. Personality of the New Millennium. Where's your crown?" She joked.

"I just mean you don't usually come in at this time." He said.

"Well, I have to pick up Rory and Olivia from school." She said sitting down at the counter as he pours her some coffee. "Oh, thanks." She said surprised. "No lectures?"

"My blood sugar's low. I'll eat an apple and get back to you." He said.

"Hm. God, this has been one hectic, bizarro day for me." She sighed.

"Yeah?" Luke said glancing at her. "How come?"

"Well it started with waking up late this morning and not having any good clothes to wear to go to Chilton and then of course, my mom showed up there." She said. "Oh and then this father from Chilton showed up at the inn all the way from Hartford just to ask me out."

"Really? You going?" Luke said glancing at her.

"No. He's got a kid in school with Rory and Olivia and the whole thing just seemed a little weird." She shrugged.

"Oh. Good." He said.

"Good?" She said confused.

"Yeah, I think it's good that you turned him down."

"Ok..."

"I mean, he's probably old, right?" He said.

"Old?"

"Yeah. I mean, he's got a kid in high school." Luke shrugged.

"Well, so do I. I have two." Lorelai pointed out.

"Yeah, but you were young when you had Rory and Olivia. Most people aren't that young. Most people are..uh.." He said cringing as he realised he was rambling.

"Old?" She said smirking slightly.

"Yeah." He smirked.

"Like this guy who asked me out." She smiled.

"But you're not going." He frowned.

"No, I'm not going." She said quietly. She smiled slightly as Luke nodded.

"Good." He repeated as Lorelai's cell rang. He used that as an excuse to get away from the awkward situation and he headed into the kitchen. He soon heard heard get up.

"I need to go." She called to him, getting out his purse.

"Keep it. I gave you decaf." He said.

"Traitor." Lorelai gasped.

"So sue me." He smirked.

* * *

Lorelai sat by her car as she waited for her daughters to come out. She smiled as she saw them and got up. "Oh!" She said in surprise as Rory walked over, dropped her backpack and hugged her.

"So, this whole plaid-skirt thing...my idea?" She said.

"Aw, my day sucked, too." Lorelai said.

"Promise?"

"Swear on my mother's life." She said. "How was your day?" She asked Olivia.

"Alright." She shrugged.

"I brought us some coffee." Lorelai said.

"Bless you!" Olivia grinned taking it as did Rory.

"Come on, get in." She smiled.

"Hey Mary!" A voice called.

Olivia rolled her eyes as she turned to see Tristan smirking at her "It's Olivia!" She called.

"I prefer Mary." He grinned. "Let me know if you change your mind about studying together." He called.

"Not likely!" She called back.

"Ouch, you wound me, Mary!" Tristan joked.

"Bye Tristan." Olivia rolled her eyes and got into the car.

"So who was that?" Lorelai asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Someone who thinks way too much of himself." She said.

"And uses biblical insults?" Lorelai joked.

"Exactly." She laughed.

"Ok, let's motor!" She smiled.

* * *

Later that night, Lorelai, Rory, Olivia, Jess and Lane were walking down the sidewalk eating slices of pizza.

"It was so weird not having you both in school today. I mean, I finally noticed some of the other kids and let me just say, they are a sad lot." Lane said.

"Very sad." Jess said.

"At least you have each other though." Rory said.

"Yeah, I guess Jess isn't too bad." Lane joked.

"Praise indeed." Jess smirked.

"Well, add a couple of plaid skirts and you've got the Chilton freaks." Olivia said.

"We do miss you." Lane said.

"You do?" Olivia teased, giving Jess a playful nudge.

"We might do." Jess smirked.

"Aw well we miss you too." Rory said. "Didn't we?"

Olivia smiled. "Yeah we did." She said.

"Hey guys, I have an idea. What about, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, you know, when I go into Hartford for my business class? What if Lane and Jess come along and you guys can shop and study and join a cult and shave your heads?" Lorelai smiled.

"Really?" Lane said perking up.

"All except the shaving your heads part." Lorelai joked.

"Then yes! Deal!" Lane grinned.

"What about you? You in?" Lorelai asked Jess.

"Sure, not got anything else to do on those days." Jess said.

"Geez thanks." Olivia smirked.

"Oh, no. What time is it?" Lane said suddenly.

"6:30." Rory said.

"I'm late for dinner." Lane sighed.

"Again? Lane, your mother is going to kill me if I keep sending you home fed and happy." Lorelai joked.

"I'm sorry, but she found a web site that sells Tofu in bulk." Lane said.

"Oh, you're kidding, right?"

"Yesterday, she went out and bought a bigger fridge." She nodded.

"Boy, now your life is scary." Olivia said.

"Can I have your crusts?" She asked them.

"It's the least I can do." Rory said handing hers to her.

"Here." Olivia smiled giving Lane hers as well.

"You can have mine too." Jess said.

"You guys are the best!" She said. "Bye!"

"Bye!" They smiled watching her go.

"You big softy." Olivia teased Jess.

"She needed it more than me." He said gruffly.

"You're still a big softy." Rory joined in with the teasing.

"Just like your uncle." Lorelai grinned as they walked past the diner.

Suddenly Rory saw Dean across the square watching them. She slowly raised her hand and waved at him, smiling slightly as he reciprocated the action. Olivia saw Jess notice what she was doing.

"You ok?" She said quietly as she saw his face change.

"I better head in or Luke will send out a search party." He said. "See you tomorrow?"

"You can bet on it." Olivia smiled softly.

"By the way, I did genuinely miss you today." He said.

Olivia smiled. "Me too." She said softly before watching him head in.

"Hey, what do you think of Luke?" Lorelai suddenly said, looking through the window of the diner, bringing them both out of their dazes.

"What do you mean?" Rory said.

"I mean, do you think he's cute?" She said.

"What?" Olivia laughed.

"Oh, no. No way." Rory said.

"No way what?" Lorelai said as they started walking away.

"You can't date Luke." She said.

"I said nothing about dating Luke!" She exclaimed.

"You kind of implied it by asking if he was cute." Olivia smirked.

"If you date him, you'll break up and we'll never be able to eat there again." Rory said.

"I repeat, I said nothing about dating Luke." Lorelai said.

"Date Al from Pancake World, his food stinks." Rory said.

"I can't believe what I'm hearing. Al's food does not stink, Al stinks." Lorelai said. She turned round and saw Luke come out onto the diner step, turning the open sign to closed. She smiled softly at him and waved. He smiled back and reciprocated the action.

Rory glanced over at Dooses' where Dean was standing. She smiled as he waved again and then headed inside the store.

Olivia glanced up at the apartment window and saw Jess watching them from there. She smiled softly and waved. She couldn't help but laugh softly as he gave her a mock salute before disappearing from sight.

The three of them then started walking home together.

 **So I hope you liked it! Please let me know what you think! I really do appreciate every review you give me and it really does motivate me to write so thank you! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you for all the follows and faves! If you're enjoying the story, please do drop me a line and let me know what you think. I really do love reading your reviews and I really do appreciate them all. They're what really motivates me to write so thank you. :)**

Chapter 3

"So tell me again how we got roped into this?" Olivia said as they walked up to the Gilmore Mansion's front door with Rory.

"Because we told Grandma we would." Rory said.

"But it's golf! It's the most boring sport ever!" Olivia grumbled.

"I know but this meant a lot to Grandma..."

"Grandpa clearly didn't want to do it though. It was obvious." Olivia pointed out.

"Just at least try to enjoy it." Rory said. "Please?"

"Fine." She sighed as Rory knocked on the door.

"Rory, Olivia, hello!" Emily smiled opening the door.

"Sorry we're a bit late." Rory said.

"Yeah the bus was delayed." Olivia said.

"Nonsense. You're right on time." Emily said.

"Hi, Grandpa." Rory smiled.

"Rory, Olivia, nice to see you both." Richard said.

"This is a perfect day for golfing, isn't it Richard?" Emily said with a pointed look.

"It was cooler at 8." Richard said.

"Told you we were late." Olivia whispered to Rory.

"Shh." She whispered back. "Are we dressed ok? We didn't have any of those short pant things." She said.

"Well, actually there is something missing. Oh, wait a minute..." She said going to retrieve two colourful hats and putting them on their hats.

"Here you go. Now you look just like Tiger Woods." Emily smiled.

"Wow, they're some hats..." Olivia said.

"Ok, off you go, you three. Have a wonderful time." Emily said.

"We will." Rory smiled.

"You bet." Richard said.

A while later, they were walking along the golf course.

"Is it hard to become a member here?" Rory asked.

"Everyone has to go through a thorough screening process." Richard nodded.

"What, kind of like the FBI?" Olivia joked.

"We're much more thorough than that." Richard replied, with a slight twinkle in his eye.

Olivia couldn't help but laugh. "Wow."

"Yes. Did you know the merger of Forscape and D.S.S.?" He said.

"Really?" Olivia said.

"International finance will never be the same and all because of a lost golfing bet." Richard nodded.

"That's crazy." Rory said.

"Well that's high finance." He said as they stopped walking. "Well, here we are. Now, what do you two know about golf?"

"That it's a good walk spoiled?" Olivia joked.

"Not much." Rory admitted, giving her sister a look.

"Well, your driver is the most powerful club in your bag and as such, it can be your most valuable asset or your greatest liability. To wield it properly requires a precise combination of confidence and humility." Richard said.

"Confidence and humility. Got it." Rory nodded.

"There you are." He said giving Rory the driver first. "That's a pretty good natural grip. Now, line the toe of your left foot up with the ball. That's right. Now, drop this shoulder a little bit. Now, keeping your left arm firm, draw the club back, swing it cleanly through the ball." He said guiding her through it.

Rory took a swing and hit the grass causing Olivia to smirk. "I'm betting that was wrong." Rory said.

"There are no rights and wrongs to the learning process. Try that again." Richard said.

Rory did but did the same thing causing Olivia to laugh this time. "Now I'm betting that was wrong." She said smirking slightly.

"Ok, why don't you try Olivia?" Richard said.

"Yeah, watch and learn from the expert." Olivia grinned.

"Oh yeah, when have you ever played golf before?" Rory retorted.

"Never but Jess made me watch some before." She said.

"I thought you said golf was the most boring sport ever?" Rory raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, well, Jess won a bet and that was my forfeit." Olivia said.

"Ok, let's carry on." Richard said, interrupting them.

Olivia took a deep breath and then swung at the ball which went flying. "I did it!" She exclaimed in surprise.

"That was very impressive." Richard said slightly surprised himself.

"Thank you!" She grinned. "I can thank Jess for that."

"I'm sure he'll be very proud." Rory rolled her eyes as she had another turn and finally hit the ball.

"Jess? Is this a friend of yours?" Richard asked as they continued walking.

"Yeah, we've known him since we were 5. He's the nephew of Luke who runs the diner in the town." Olivia said.

"He?" Richard said surprised.

"Yeah! We practically all grew up together." She smiled.

"Oh. Right." Richard said.

Rory saw the wistful look in his eyes. "I can't believe I actually hit the ball!" She said changing the subject.

* * *

"Urghh, give me coffee to go and make it a big one!" Lorelai exclaimed collapsing onto a stool at the counter at Luke's.

"Stressful day?" Luke asked pouring her some coffee.

"You could say that again! Did I tell you about this wedding at the inn?" She said.

"The double wedding with the twins?" Luke said.

"Yep! But we met the grooms today and guess who they are?" She grinned.

"Who?"

"They're only twins as well!" Lorelai grinned.

"No way!" He chuckled.

"Yep! I will so be glad when this is over though. The brides keep arguing over everything and their mother wants to be anywhere but there." She said.

"I'm sure you can handle it." He said.

"I'm just complaining." She sighed. "It will actually give us a lot of promotion at least. People are coming for all over the country." She said.

"That's good." Luke said.

"Anyway, I better get back. Thanks for letting me vent." She said.

"I'm always here." He said.

"Thanks." She smiled. "Oh and can you save us some pie this evening? Rory and Olivia are at the country club with my dad. I think they might need some pie."

"Sure." Luke nodded.

"Thanks, you're the best." She grinned.

"I try." He smirked. "Good luck with the wedding."

"Thanks." Lorelai sighed, before giving him a smile and a wave before leaving.

* * *

"This place is so beautiful. I could see just coming here to think or read. But that probably defeats the purpose of the holes with the flag thing." Rory smiled as they walked towards the country club after finishing their golf lesson.

"There is something rather serene about walking around here." Richard said.

"I'd love to come here and just read on a bench or somewhere." Rory said.

"That would be nice." Richard smiled. "How about you, Olivia?"

"I like reading but I'd much prefer to come here and listen to my walkman." She admitted.

"Music is also good for the youth." He said. "I have several records at home that I sometimes like to listen to in my study after a stressful day."

"You've got records?" Olivia asked interested.

"Quite a few." He nodded. He glanced at his granddaughter. "I'd be happy to show it to you sometime if you'd like." He offered.

"Like? I'd love that!" She grinned. "I'm still saving up to buy a record player."

"Well, it's a date then." Richard smiled. "And Rory, I'd be more than happy to show you my library of books."

"That sounds great!" Rory smiled.

"It's a plan then." He nodded.

"Can we go now?" Olivia asked.

"What?" Richard said in surprise.

"Please? It just might be hard to do it on Friday because we wouldn't want to leave mom and Grandma." She said.

"Well...I guess you're right. I was going to offer to buy you some lunch at the country club though." He said.

"Well, we could get lunch and then head back to yours?" Rory suggested. "We'll let our mom know we'll be back a bit later."

"Ok. If you're both sure?" Richard said.

"We'd love to!" Olivia smiled.

"Ok then." He smiled slightly. "Well let's retire to the steam room and then meet back at the club." He said.

"It's a plan!" Rory said.

* * *

"So how are you doing in here?" Richard asked as he came into his study to find Olivia looking through his selection of records.

"These are amazing, Grandpa! You have all the classics!" She exclaimed.

"I have tried and gather a good selection over the years." Richard said. "Anytime you want to come and listen to them, you're welcome to."

Olivia glanced at him and smiled. "Thanks, Grandpa." She said softly.

"I'll just go check on your sister and then you two should probably get on your way back or else your mother will worry." He said.

"Yeah, you're probably right." She sighed getting up. "Hey Grandpa?" She said.

"Yes?"

"Thanks for today." She said. "It was fun." She smiled softly.

Richard smiled softly. "It was, wasn't it?"

Olivia smiled as she watched him leave the study. She had to admit she had been dreading the day but she actually turned out having fun. Her and Rory had a lot more in common with their grandfather than she had thought.

* * *

Later that day, Rory and Olivia were sat at Luke's waiting for their mom.

"Interesting hats." Luke commented coming up to their table with two slices of pie.

"We went golfing with our grandfather today." Rory told him.

"Did you know that golf courses are an environmental blight because of the chemicals they use to keep the grass green?" Luke said.

"Geez do you have to be such a downer, Uncle Luke?" Jess smirked appearing next to him.

Luke smirked slightly. "Sorry." He said before walking away.

"So how was it?" Jess asked sitting down with them.

"It was good actually." Olivia said.

"Seriously?" Jess said surprised.

"I'm surprised too!" Olivia laughed.

"Yeah you should have heard the amount of complaining on the way there." Rory teased.

"Hey, you weren't sure either!" She retorted.

"You're right." Rory admitted. "But it was nice. Grandpa started to relax after a bit and we actually had a lot in common."

"So that's good then huh?" Jess said.

"Yeah." Olivia nodded smiling.

"My God, this day! The swans, the tulle, my head...Luke, I need the largest cheeseburger in the world. Let's break a record here, mister!" Lorelai exclaimed coming in and joining them at the table. "So, the wedding is a nightmare. We got these ten boxes of creepy larvae that are supposed to swarm into beautiful butterflies on the wedding day. They swarmed a little early! What's with the hats?" She laughed looking at her daughters.

"Grandma gave them to us." Rory said.

"Oh, now that's just mean." Lorelai said.

"They're not that bad." She said.

"Do you want a mirror?" Lorelai joked.

"Fine, it's coming off." Rory sighed taking hers off.

"Well I'm keeping mine on." Olivia shrugged.

"So how come you ended back at theirs? I would have thought you'd want to escape as soon as you could." Lorelai said.

"Grandpa wanted to show us his library and record collection." Olivia said.

"Oh. Right." Lorelai said.

"It was our choice. We asked him if we could." Olivia said. "It was actually quite fun. And it meant we got to talk to Grandpa a bit more instead of just talking about golf."

"Right. Sure." She said.

"It was fun, mom. We golfed, we had a steam and then we had lunch at the club. And then we headed back to Grandma and Grandpa's." Rory said.

"Huh. So seems like you two had a pretty packed day then." Lorelai said.

"Yeah." Rory nodded.

"And you really had a good time?" She questioned.

"Yeah..." Olivia said glancing at her. "Is everything ok?"

"Sorry, I just...I'm surprised. I thought you were both going to be bored."

"We were kind of surprised too. I don't know , it was pretty there and Grandpa and we talked a lot." Rory said.

"Well...good then." Lorelai forced a smile on her face.

"Do you really not like the hat?" Rory asked putting it back on.

Olivia watched her mom carefully. She smiled softly when their mom smiled at Rory. "Nah, I think it's cute." She said.

* * *

"To what do I owe this pleasure?" Tristan smirked as he leant against the lockers next to where Rory and Olivia were putting books away.

"You don't. You're at our lockers." Rory said before walking off.

"Did I say something?" He said.

"Not everything is about you." Olivia snapped before walking off.

"Hey, wait up! Olivia, wait!" Tristan said chasing after her.

"What?" Olivia said surprised.

"What what?" He said confused.

"You called me Olivia. You never call me by my name." She said.

"Yeah, well, you look like you could bite my head off so I thought it would be safer not to bait you anymore." He joked.

Olivia smirked slightly. "Sorry." She said.

"Did I say something wrong?" He asked.

Olivia sighed. "No, it's not you. We're just in the middle of something with our mom at the moment. It's weighing down on both of us a bit."

"Oh. Right." Tristan said. "Sorry."

"It's hardly your fault." Olivia shrugged. She sighed. "We went golfing with our grandfather last weekend and our mom doesn't have the best relationship with our grandparents so I think she was just a bit taken aback that we enjoyed it as much as we did."

"Ah." Tristan said. "Family conflict sucks."

"It really does." She said glumly.

"I know how to cheer you up." He smirked.

"How?"

"Come out and grab a coffee with me?" He grinned.

"Tristan, I can't date you." Olivia said.

"Why not?"

"Because...because..." She tried to come up with an answer.

"See, you don't have a reason not to!" Tristan quipped.

"Bye Tristan." Olivia rolled her eyes heading for the exit.

"I'll be waiting!" He called.

"It will be for a long time then." She called.

"Bye Mary!" He grinned.

Olivia couldn't help but smirk slightly. "Bye Joseph!" She said before leaving the school and heading home.

* * *

Olivia and Rory headed to the inn as they had promised to help out at the wedding that afternoon. They were sitting down manning the guest book as all the guests enjoyed the reception and party afterwards. Olivia saw their mom talk to a few guests. "Mom loves these events doesn't she?" She told Rory.

"Yeah. She's so good at being the hostess." Rory smiled. She sighed. "I wish she wasn't so angry with us."

Olivia sighed. "I don't think she's angry. I think she's just...I don't. Feeling left out or something." She said.

"It's not our fault that we got on with Grandpa though. She can't be mad at that." Rory said.

"Look, remember she didn't have the best relationship with them when she was our age. Think about our relationship with her now. We're like best friends. She never had that with them. And now, she sees us hanging out with them and actually enjoying it. It makes sense that it would upset her a bit or make her feel left out." She said. "She shouldn't have kicked off like she did with you but just think about it from her point of view. They...well, from what we heard, they never really made the effort with her and now, here they are, making an effort with us. It must hurt a bit."

Rory sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right..." She said as she saw their mom walk over and sit down next to them.

"Hey, strangers." She said hesitantly.

"Hey." Rory said quietly.

"Hi mom." Olivia smiled softly.

"Good turnout?" She asked.

"Yep." Rory said.

"Do you want something to drink?" She asked.

"Are you trying to make up?" Rory said.

"No, I'm trying to hydrate you." She said.

"I'm fine, thanks." Rory said.

Lorelai sighed. "I'm sorry."

"It's ok.." She said quietly, glancing at their mom.

"A crazy evil spirit obsessed with bra size took over my body." Lorelai said.

"It happens." Olivia smirked slightly.

"She's gone now." Lorelai assured them.

"Good to know." Rory smiled softly.

"You know, I'm glad you're bonding with your grandparents." She sighed.

"No you're not." Rory said.

She sighed. "Yes I am. It's just weird for me is all. I just can't relate to it."

"We know, mom." Olivia said softly. "We didn't plan it to happen. It just...happened."

"I know." Lorelai said. "I didn't mean to cut you both off from them so completely, you know. It just happened. Not having them in my life just felt so right. I just never thought...well, I'm sorry." She said sincerely.

"It's ok." Rory smiled softly.

They suddenly saw an angry woman make their daughter sit down on a seat. "I did not pay $500 for this dress so you could run around and mess it up. Now you sit and be still. Cross your legs. You're a lady." She said.

"God, I must have had a million dresses like that when I was a kid." Lorelai told them.

"It doesn't really scream you." Rory said.

"No. I did all the screaming." She smirked slightly.

"Hey mom?" Olivia said.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you for not putting us in dresses like that." She said.

"You're welcome." She smiled. "Of course wearing those dresses...not all bad." She said.

"No?" Rory said.

"Oh no! They really fly up when you twirl around." Lorelai grinned.

"Huh." Olivia laughed.

"And if you're wearing that ruffled underwear...big crowd pleaser." She nodded.

"If it makes you feel better, I think I got a fungus from the steam room." Rory said after a moment.

Lorelai smiled. "It does. Thank you." She said softly.

"Hey, let's go dance!" Olivia grinned. "Can we, mom?"

"Sure, go ahead. Enjoy yourselves. I've just got to check with Sookie in the kitchen and then I'll be back out." Lorelai said.

"Ok!" Olivia smiled, grabbing Rory's hand and leading her to the party.

They were stood watching the dancing from the porch when someone came and stood beside them. "Hey.."

"Dean..uh..hi!" Rory said surprised. "What..uh..what are you doing here?"

"My parents weirdly know the family so they were invited." Dean explained. "So...here I am."

"Here you are." Rory said.

"Do you..uh..do you want to dance?" He asked Rory.

"Oh..uh.." Rory said glancing at Olivia.

"Go, it's fine." Olivia smiled.

"Are you sure?" Rory asked, feeling bad at abandoning her.

"I'm sure. Go." She said.

Rory glanced at Dean and gave a shy smile. "Lead the way then." She said.

Dean smiled and they headed off to the dance floor. Olivia watched for a bit, smiling as she saw Rory laugh at something Dean said.

"So this is where you're hiding..." A voice said.

Olivia grinned. "What are you doing here?"

"Luke said you and Rory were helping out. I had a couple hours free so I thought I'd pop by." Jess said.

"You? Jess Mariano? Voluntarily at a wedding?" Olivia teased.

"I know. Don't tell anyone. I've got a rep to keep." Jess smirked. "I just...I've felt like I haven't seen you guys much lately." He said.

"Aw, have you missed us?" She teased.

"A bit." He admitted gruffly. "So where's Rory?"

"Oh..uh..well, she's sort of over there dancing...with..uh..with Dean." Olivia said hesitantly.

Jess looked over and saw Rory and Dean chatting and laughing. "Huh." He said.

"I'm sorry." She said quietly.

Jess glanced at her. "Nothing to be sorry about."

"His parents know the family." Olivia said. "So...yeah..."

"It's fine." He said.

"Really?" She said glancing at him.

"Hey, do you want to dance?" He asked suddenly.

"What?" She laughed. "I don't think I've ever seen you dance before. Ever."

"First time for everything." Jess smirked. "So what do you say?"

Olivia raised her eyebrows at him but then grinned. "I say lead the way!" She grinned.

"Follow me then." He smiled, taking her hand and walking towards the dance floor.

 **So I hope you liked it! :) Please do let me know what you think. It really does motivate me to write knowing you guys are reading. :) Thank you for your continued support! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you for your support! It really does mean so much to me! :) Here's the next chapter! :)**

Chapter 4

Olivia smiled as she saw a red 'B' written on her paper for the English paper. She had worked really hard on it and a 'B' for her was really good. She glanced across at Rory who was staring down at her paper looking extremely upset. Olivia frowned and glanced over and was shocked to see a 'D' on hers. She never normally does better than her sister in anything. The class came to an end and she heard Paris deliberately baiting Rory. "Hey Paris?" She spoke up.

"What?" Paris glared at her.

"Back off." Olivia said as she saw Rory get up and rush out of the room.

"Not my fault she's not up for this school." Paris said spitefully.

Olivia just shook her head and rushed after her sister. "Rory, wait!" She called catching up to her. "It's not the end of the world." She said.

"It's a D! I've never had a D in my life before!" Rory exclaimed.

"It's not the end of the world. Rory, we've just started here. We were bound to be behind to start with. We knew we'd have to take some time to catch up." Olivia said.

"Yeah, so how come you got a B then?" She retorted.

Olivia sighed. "I don't know." She admitted.

Rory sighed. "I guess you've always been better at remembering facts than I have." She said.

"Come on Ror, Mr Medina said there will be a test on Friday. If we really study a lot for that, you'll forget all about your D." She said.

"Hey!" A familiar voice said.

"And it just keeps getting better." Rory said.

"Oh you look sad." Tristan said.

"Tristan, just leave it." Olivia warned.

"What, bad grade?" He said. "Well I'm sure you'll catch up."

"No, it's just me with the bad grade so it's only me who's the disappointment." Rory snapped before walking off.

"Well done." Olivia told him.

"What? I didn't realise she'd be that down about one grade!" Tristan defended himself.

"Well then maybe you should think before you speak next time." Olivia said. "I've got to go."

"Olivia..."

"No, Tristan. Right now, I've got to be there for Rory! We've got to study for the next test. I've got to show Rory she's not a failure because right now that's exactly what she's thinking. So I'm sorry I can't hang around to play your games with you but I've got to be there for my sister." She said before walking off.

* * *

Rory and Olivia were sat at the diner after school that day. Olivia glanced at Rory who was sat eating her burger not really saying much. "Ror, come on. It will be ok." She said.

"Yeah and what about when mom finds out? She's got that parent's day at the school this week." Rory said.

"She won't be disappointed in you if that's what you're thinking. She would never be disappointed in you." Olivia said.

"Disappointed about what?" Jess said coming up to the table to refill their coffee mugs.

"Nothing." Rory said glumly.

"Ok..." Jess said.

Rory sighed. "I've just got a bad grade for a paper, that's all." She said.

"Hey, we're going to have a study night on Thursday, the day before our test. Why don't you come over and help us study?" Olivia said.

"Oh..uh.." Jess said glancing at Rory. "It's ok. I'm sure you won't need me there." He said. "I should..uh..go take some orders." He said walking off.

"What was that about?" Rory asked confused.

"I don't know..." Olivia said although she had a good guess. "I'm going to go pay ok?"

"Ok." Rory said.

Olivia walked up to the counter where Jess had gone. "Ok are you trying to make it obvious?" She said.

"What?" He said.

"Rory could really do with your help right now. So could I! Thursday night is going to be crazy and we could do with a friend." She said.

"Why don't you ask Dean then? She'd probably much rather have him there." Jess said before walking off.

Olivia sighed, left some notes on the counter and then she left with Rory.

* * *

A couple days later, the two of them were sat at Luke's again and they were busy studying for the test, waiting for their mom to return from Chilton. Olivia glanced at Rory. "Mom's not going to be mad, you know..." She said knowing she was nervous.

"I know..." She said quietly. "I just...I feel like I've failed already."

"It was one paper, Ror. It was you first paper. You'll be fine." Olivia assured her.

Rory glanced at her and gave her a small smile. "Thanks for studying with me, Liv. I know you don't really need it but..."

"Hey, I'm here for you ok? Wherever, whenever." Olivia smiled softly.

"Here." Luke said placing some pie infront of them.

"What's this?" Rory said.

"You looked like you needed pie." Luke said.

"We did?" Rory asked.

"You've been studying ever since you came into here and I saw you throw that pencil earlier so I figured you might like some pie." He said.

"Thanks Luke." She smiled softly.

"Don't work too hard ok?" Luke said before heading back to the kitchen just as Lorelai came in.

"Hi mom." Olivia smiled as she sat down with them.

"Hey." She said.

Rory glanced at her. "I wanted to tell you..."

"Then why didn't you?" Lorelai said softly.

"I don't know. I just felt...stupid." Rory admitted. "I've never got a D before. Ever."

Lorelai sighed. "I know." She said. "But you could have told me. I could have helped. Or tried to."

"I know." Rory said quietly. "I just...I didn't want you to worry. Besides I had Liv."

Lorelai smiled softly at her other daughter. "I know. But it would have been nice to know before I acted like a complete goofball at the meeting today."

"Sorry." She said.

"So what's next?" She asked.

"We have a test on Friday. We've already been studying for it." Olivia said.

"A test? Ok good. Well let me help. Oh wait, urgh, damn!" Lorelai said. "I've got to work late at the inn on Thursday!"

"It's ok mom." Rory said. "We'll be fine."

"Yeah we already have a plan." Olivia said. "We know you'd help if you could."

"Are you sure?" Lorelai said.

"We're sure." Rory said.

"Ok. Well I'll help you study tonight ok?" She said. "I'm just going to get some food first though." She said getting up.

"Hey mom?" Rory said.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks." She smiled softly.

* * *

Thursday night came and Olivia and Rory were sat in the living room, Olivia asking Rory questions and Rory answering them.

"The sonnets are 154 poems of 14 lines." Rory said.

"Except?" Olivia said.

"Except for 126 which is 12 lines." Rory said.

"Yep!"

"They are written in iambic pentameter."

"Except?" Olivia said.

"Except 145 which is in tetrameter." Rory said.

"You got it." Olivia smiled.

"Really?"

"Not one mistake." She said.

Rory let out a breath. "I finally feel like I'm getting there."

"Well you are." Olivia smiled.

"I don't know how to thank you. I've been acting so crazy and you've just been there for me." Rory said.

"That's what sisters are for, aren't they?" She said.

"Well...I appreciate it." Rory said softly just as the doorbell rang.

"Let's take a break and then we can go again." Olivia said.

"Sounds good." She smiled.

Olivia went to answer and was surprised to see Jess standing there. "Jess!" She said. "What are you doing here?"

"I brought a peace offering for being jerk." He said holding up a takeout bag from Luke's. "And..uh..if you guys still need help studying, not that I will be much help, but I'd be happy to try and help."

Olivia smiled softly. "Come on in." She said.

* * *

Olivia walked from the kitchen back to the living room but stopped when she heard laughter suddenly coming from the living room. She peeked in to see Rory and Jess sitting opposite each other on the couch, Jess holding the book with all the facts and asking Rory questions from it.

"Well I think you're ready." Jess said.

"You do?"

"You're word perfect." He nodded. "You'll be top of the class in no time."

Rory laughed. "Yeah right. Thanks for the faith though."

"I will always believe in you." Jess shrugged.

Rory smiled softly. "Thanks for coming over. I..uh..I've missed you lately."

Olivia saw Jess look a bit guilty but gave Rory a small smile. "I've missed you too." He said. "I..uh..I'm sorry for being a little distant recently. You know..uh..school and work and stuff..." He trailed off.

"It's fine." Rory said. "I'm just glad you're here now."

Jess smiled. "Yeah?"

"Of course! We love you, Jess. I really needed my best friend tonight and you came through for me. I won't forget that." Rory said.

"I'll always be here. No matter what." Jess said.

"Thanks." She smiled softly.

Suddenly the doorbell rang again. Olivia glanced at her sister and Jess before making her presence known. "I'll get it." She said going to the door. "Tristan?" She said surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I figured if you two were killing yourself with revision tonight, the least I could do was provide some snacks." He said holding up some bags.

"You came over just to give us some snacks?" Olivia said surprised.

"And..uh..to apologise." He said.

"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day." Olivia teased slightly.

Tristan smirked slightly. "Look, I may not know why this is so important to you both but I'm sorry if I upset either of you earlier this week. I didn't mean to."

Olivia smiled. "Apology accepted." She said.

"So..uh..English is actually one subject I actually don't suck at so if you do need any help...?" He said hesitantly.

Olivia glanced through to the living room where Rory and Jess were chatting and laughing softly in the living room and smiled slightly wistfully at them. "Uh..well our friend's actually come over and he's been helping..." She said.

"Oh. Right. Well ok..." Tristan said.

"You know what? I've been focusing on questioning Rory and helping her, I've not actually tested myself." She said after a moment. "I could probably do with some help with that..." She said.

Tristan smiled. "Lead the way." He said.

Olivia led him through the living room where she saw Rory and Jess glance at them, Rory looking more surprised at seeing Tristan, and towards the kitchen. "So...what snacks did you bring?" She grinned.

Tristan smirked. "Help yourself." He said handing the bags over.

* * *

"So Tristan's from you school?" Jess asked Rory.

"Yep. He annoys the hell out of me but for some reason, Liv actually gives him the time of day. I don't understand why but...yeah." She shrugged.

"Huh." Jess said. "So do you think he likes her?"

"Oh he definitely likes her." Rory nodded. "That's what I'm worried about. He has this rep at the school of being this big woman's man. Apparently he's with a different girl every other week."

"Sounds like a jerk to me." Jess frowned.

Rory shrugged. "I trust Liv's judgement." She said.

Jess just nodded. "You want another drink?" He asked.

"Yeah ok." She nodded.

"I'll go grab some." He said. "You get reading those facts again and I'll test you for the last time before we should probably call it a night unless you want to sleep through your alarm tomorrow." He smirked.

Rory laughed. "Good point!" She said, picking up her point again.

Jess walked through to the kitchen but stopped suddenly, shocked by what he saw. Infront of him, sat at the kitchen table, were Olivia and Tristan but they didn't notice him as they were too busy kissing. He cleared his throat loudly which got their attention.

"Jess!" Olivia exclaimed jumping apart from Tristan. "I..uh.."

"I...was just going to grab Rory and me another drink..." He said slowly.

"Jess..." Olivia tried again.

Jess went over to the fridge and grabbed two sodas. He glanced at Olivia. "Don't mind me.." He said.

Olivia put her head in her hands after he disappeared back into the kitchen. "Ok, I think you should go." She told Tristan.

"What, why?" Tristan said confused.

"Jess just caught us! He caught us kissing!" Olivia exclaimed.

"So?" He said still not understanding.

"So...it's embarrassing!" She exclaimed.

"Why do you care what he thinks?" He frowned.

"He's my friend! He shouldn't have had to find us like that. It will seem like I've been hiding something from him." She said. "You need to go. Please!" She begged.

"Fine. But I don't understand why." Tristan said but he did reluctantly leave, leaving Olivia to collapse down on a chair, putting her head in her hands.

* * *

"I feel so much happier! Did I already say that?" Rory said as they walked towards the diner.

"Just in every other sentence." Olivia smiled slightly.

"Sorry." She said sheepishly. "Have I thanked you though? Last night really helped. You've been amazing." She said.

Olivia smiled softly. "Well I've told you, I'm always here for you."

"And I really appreciate it." She said.

"And...I thought it was sweet that Tristan came over to help you as well. Seems like he's not always a jerk." Rory said.

Olivia shrugged. "Guess not." She said glancing at her. It was obvious Jess hadn't told her about the kiss and she didn't know why.

"And how sweet was it that Jess came round to help? I felt like...it seems so stupid now...but I felt like he was deliberately avoiding me lately but after last night, I felt like I finally had Jess back. Our best friend." She smiled softly.

"Right." Olivia nodded.

"Are you ok?" Rory asked glancing at her.

"Sure. Why wouldn't I be?" She said.

"Because you've barely said a word all day." She said.

"Sorry." Olivia said.

"Are you sure you're ok?" Rory asked.

Olivia glanced through the diner window and saw Jess standing behind the counter. She suddenly saw him glance up at her so she looked away quickly. "Actually, I've just remembered I need to go ask mom something. Grab me a burger ok and I'll meet you back home?" She said.

"Uh..sure..ok..." She said. "Are you sure you're ok?"

"I'm fine." She said giving her a small smile. "I won't be long."

"Ok." Rory said before heading into the diner.

Olivia watched through the window as Rory headed up to the counter. She watched as Rory started chatting with Jess and she saw them laughing together. She sighed before turning around and heading away from the diner.

 **So I hope you liked it! A whole lot of different feelings going on in this chapter! ;) Let me know what you think! I really do love reading your reviews so keep them coming! Thanks again for your continued support! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank you so much for your support! I really do appreciate you all taking the time to review and read my story. :) Here's the next chapter! :)**

Chapter 5

Olivia pushed her food around her plate as she vaguely listened to her mom and Rory's conversation with their Grandma.

"So where did you say dad was?" Lorelai asked.

"Away on business." Emily said.

"Location's top secret?"

"Oh, Germany." She said.

"Germany? Is dad's firm insuring Nazis now?" Lorelai joked.

"Your father doesn't know any Nazis." Emily said.

"I know, mom. I was just..." Lorelai said.

"What?"

"Joking. She was joking." Olivia spoke for the first time.

"Oh. Hard to tell." Emily said.

"Yeah, well..." Lorelai said.

"Oh, I'm afraid I have some bad news. Claudia died." Emily told her.

"Who?" Lorelai frowned.

"Claudia. Your cousin Claudia." She said but saw Lorelai just staring at her. "Claudia!"

"I'm hearing the name, mom. I have no idea who that is."

"Claudia's your cousin, for all intents and purposes." Emily said.

"Oh, now we're getting to it." Lorelai said.

"She was your father's grandmother's sister's girl. So to you, that would make her..."

"Nothing?"

"Regardless the funeral's on Thursday. I thought we'd all go together." She said.

Lorelai glanced at her daughters and then back at her mother. "Ooh, whoa! Two problems. Impossible to get away from the inn Thursday. Two, I've never met this woman." She said.

"You most certainly have."

"When?"

"Several times."

"I'll take one."

"We went to her house in Groton to see the first moon landing. She'd just gotten a new Philco." She said.

"I have no memory of this whatsoever."

"Rory, Olivia, correct me if I'm wrong, but men have walked on the moon regardless of whether your mother remembers it or not." Emily said.

"That's the rumour." Rory said.

"I know men have walked on the moon. I just don't know Claudia."

"So you're not going?"

"Not this time."

"I don't think Claudia's planning to die a second time." Emily said dryly, causing Olivia to smile slightly.

"Mom, I couldn't go if I wanted to." Lorelai said.

"Fine." Emily said. "Oh wait, Rudolph Gottfried." She said after a moment.

"Another cousin?"

"No, a Nazi that we knew. I'd forgotten. We stayed with him once in Munich. Nice old man. Interesting stories." She said.

"Mom you socialized with a Nazi? That's despicable! That's heinous!" Lorelai exclaimed.

"No, dear, that was a joke." Emily smiled slightly.

Olivia and Rory laughed softly. "She got you, mom." Olivia said.

* * *

Olivia was walking down the hallway at Chilton the following week to meet Rory, their mom and Sookie outside for the bake sale.

"Hey Olivia!" A familiar voice said.

Olivia cringed and turned round. She had deliberately avoided him all day. "Tristan..." She said.

"Hey." He said.

"I..uh..I need to head out there. My mom and Rory are waiting for me." Olivia said.

"Sure." He nodded. "I was just wondering if we could talk?"

"About what?" She said.

"You know what about." Tristan said.

Olivia glanced at the floor. "No. I don't. I'm sorry. I need to go." She said before rushing off, leaving a confused Tristan behind.

* * *

After school, Olivia and Rory were sat at Luke's eating some food. Olivia saw Jess standing at the counter. "I'll be back." She told Rory before going up to the counter. "Hey.." She said hesitantly.

"Hey." Jess said glancing at her.

"I..uh..I haven't really seen you since..uh..well, you know..." Olivia said awkwardly.

"Yeah.." He said.

"It didn't mean anything." She said.

"Ok." Jess frowned.

"I mean, it might have looked like it did, but it didn't. I was just caught in the moment..." She rambled.

"Liv, I don't care." He said. "You can kiss who you like."

"I know...I just..uh..I thought you were owed an explanation." She said.

"Why?" He said confused.

"Because...you're...you're my...friend." Olivia said.

"It's fine." Jess said.

"Oh...well, ok." She said quietly. She suddenly saw him frowning. "What?" She said.

"I hadn't seen her with him for a while. I didn't realise they were still talking..." He said gesturing to where Dean had come in and was now chatting with Rory.

Olivia glanced over and then back at Jess. "Right..." She said quietly. "Uh..I'll see you around then."

"Yeah...see you." He said not taking his eyes off Rory and Dean.

Olivia sighed and headed back to the table. "Hey Ror, I forgot I was going to pick up this cd from Lane's! I'll meet you back at home?" She said.

"Ok!" Rory smiled at her, before Olivia headed out.

* * *

"Are you ok?" Lane asked.

"What?" Olivia said looking up from where she was sat on Lane's bed.

"You seem distracted..." Lane said. "Something on your mind?"

"You could say that." She sighed.

Lane glanced at her and saw Olivia's sad expression. "Anything I could help with?" She asked. "I'm a good listener." She smiled softly.

Olivia gave her a small smile. "You'll think I'm crazy..."

"Me? The girl who hides her whole life from her mom under her floorboards. I don't think so." Lane joked.

Olivia smiled slightly. "It's just...complicated." She said. She glanced at her friend. "Have you ever know someone basically your whole life and realise you're looking at them in a different way?" She said hesitantly.

"Uh...not really..." Lane said. She glanced at Olivia. "But I feel like you're going through that?"

"I don't know. All my feelings are so messed up at the moment, I don't even know what to think." She admitted. She sighed. "Jess told me something a few weeks ago, just as we were starting at Chilton..."

"Yeah?"

"You have to promise you won't say anything to anyone..." Olivia said.

"I promise." She nodded.

"He...he likes Rory." She said quietly.

"Well duh! You've all been inseparable since you met." Lane said.

"No I mean he..uh..he likes her. As in really likes her." Olivia said.

"Oh. Oh!" Lane said suddenly understanding. "Does she know?"

"No." Olivia shook her head. "I...I kind of freaked out and told him he couldn't tell her. What if things went wrong? I'd have to side with Rory and then we'd never speak again!" She said.

"Well that makes sense...You've been friends for so long." Lane said.

"But now I'm thinking about whether there was another reason I may have freaked out." Olivia admitted.

"Like what?"

"I don't know. I just...when Jess caught me and Tristan kissing the another day, the first thing in my head was that I wanted him to know that it didn't mean anything. I don't even know why!" Olivia said.

"Wait, what? You kissed Tristan?" Lane exclaimed.

"Yeah..." She said quietly. "That night when Rory and I were studying for that test. He came over and he was being really sweet...and I don't know, maybe I was trying to push my other feelings to one side..."

"And you ended up kissing?"

"Kind of..." She said.

"I don't know what to do. Jess likes Rory but Rory seems to like Dean and then Tristan keeps wanting to talk about that kiss but I just want to...urgh, I don't even know what I want!" Olivia exclaimed.

"Do you...do you think you might have feelings for Jess?" Lane asked cautiously.

Olivia glanced at her and blushed slightly. "I don't know." She said honestly. "But I know I don't like the idea of him being with Rory or anyone in fact." She said before sighing. "I'm a terrible person."

"No you're not." Lane said softly.

"I am! I can see how much it kills Jess to see Rory with Dean but he's only not doing anything because he promised me he wouldn't. When I freaked out before, when he told me about his feelings, we had a fight and he called me selfish. And I'm starting to feel like I am. I'm an awful friend and a horrible sister." She said quietly.

"Liv...you can't help how you feel..."

"I don't know what to do." She admitted.

"Ok, so let's get this straight..." Lane said. "So you're saying Jess likes Rory..."

"Yeah..."

"But Rory seems to be into Dean?"

"It seems like it."

"But you think you might have feelings for Jess?"

"I don't know...maybe..."

"But you kissed Tristan?"

"Yes." Olivia cringed.

"Complicated." Lane said.

"Tell me about it." She sighed.

Lane glanced at her. "Do you think...do you think Rory might feel differently if she knew about Jess' feelings? I mean, do you think she might...uh...well...?"

"Like him like he likes her?" Olivia said quietly.

"Well...yeah..."

"I don't know." She said honestly. "I never thought she would but then...on Thursday, when Jess came over to help us study, I saw them in the living room and...well, I don't know." She said. She glanced at Lane. "Am I totally insane?" She said.

"No, I think you're a normal teenager." Lane smiled softly. "But...I think you should talk to Jess."

"And say what?"

"Tell him how you feel." She said.

"How would that help anything though? He likes Rory." Olivia said.

"It's going to kill you otherwise if you don't. You'll have all these what ifs in your head." She said.

"It wouldn't be selfish?" Olivia said quietly.

"I don't think so." Lane said just as Rory rushed in. "Rory!" She said surprised.

"Liv, you need to come!" Rory said out of breath.

"Why, what's wrong?" Olivia asked.

"It's Cinnamon." Rory said.

* * *

Olivia had to smile as she watched Luke and Sookie both put their food down and exchange some snipes. They would always compete. She did smile though as she saw them eventually come to an understanding. They would always compete but it always ended with a grudging respect and understanding afterwards. She glanced over at Jess who was leaning against the wall with a drink. She then saw Dean enter the house and bump into Rory. She suddenly felt someone brush past her and she saw Jess walk past Rory and Dean and exit the house. She took a deep breath before following him. She found him sat on a bench outside so she slowly went and sat down next to him. "Hey..." She said quietly.

"Hey." He said.

"So..uh..sad occasion." She said.

"Yeah, they really loved that cat." Jess said.

"Yeah, they did." Olivia smiled sadly.

Jess glanced at her. "I still think it's weird to have a wake for a cat though." He said.

Olivia smiled slightly. "That's because you've never had a pet before."

"True." Jess smirked slightly.

Olivia smiled. "It was nice that you came though. I'm sure Babette and Morey appreciate it."

"They've always been good to me." Jess shrugged.

"Yeah.." She said. She glanced at him. "Jess?" She said nervously.

"Yeah?" He said.

"I'm sorry." She said.

"About what?"

"I should have let you tell Rory how you feel..." Olivia said quietly.

"What?" He said surprised, glancing at her.

"I know I freaked out because I don't want our friendship to be ruined..." She said.

"And I get that." Jess said.

"I know you do. I just...recently...I don't know, I feel like there may have been another reason why I didn't want you to tell her..." Olivia admitted. "I didn't realise it at the time but...maybe I was a bit jealous and just didn't realise it at the time..."

"What do you mean?" He frowned.

Olivia swallowed nervously. "I think...I think I might have been jealous that you liked Rory and..uh..not me..." She admitted.

"Are you being serious?" Jess said.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what to say. I don't even know how to feel at the moment but I think there might be something there and...well, I thought you should know..." She said nervously.

"Geez, seriously? Are you trying to mess with my head?" He exclaimed.

"No!" She exclaimed. "I just thought..."

"Yeah well you thought wrong! Why would I possibly want to know that? Do you want me to feel bad, is that it? Do you want me to feel guilty about how I feel?" He said angrily.

"No, Jess, I just..." Olivia said blinking back some tears.

"You're being selfish, that's what! I can't believe this! I thought you were genuinely afraid of losing me as a friend. But really you just didn't want me to be happy with someone else! That's selfish!" He exclaimed.

"Jess..."

"I can't deal with this right now." He said before storming back into the house.

Olivia blinked back tears and sat by herself for a moment. She heard her cell ring. She took it out of her pocket and saw it was Tristan. She sighed before declining his call. He took a deep breath before heading back inside. She stopped for a moment though as she saw her mom outside their house but she wasn't alone. She was surprised when she realised the person she was talking to was Mr Medina. What was he doing here? She shook her head. She couldn't deal with that right now. She headed back inside Babette and Morey's house.

* * *

Later that evening, Morey was playing piano as all the guests gathered in the living room. She glanced over at Jess who was avoiding her gaze. She sighed and headed towards the kitchen where she found her mom, who had obviously returned, with Babette. She stood at the doorway listening to their conversation.

"You know, I don't know what I'm going to do with myself now. You live to take care of your kids." Babette was saying.

"I know, sweetie, but you gave her everything that you had." Lorelai said.

"I know. She was so tiny when I got her. She could sleep in my shoe."

"The other day I came across these hats that I made for Rory and Olivia. They were like doll hats." She smiled softly.

"Oh, they grow up so fast." Babette said.

"And then they take your clothes." Lorelai joked.

"I guess eventually you have to move on. Figure out what your life is going to be when you're not busy taking care of somebody else. Geez, look at this place. Not a clean glass in sight!" Babette said grabbing some glasses and cleaning them in the sink.

"Let me help you with that." Lorelai said. "How does Morey get around in here?" She joked gesturing to the low ceiling.

"Oh, just fine. He had a couple of concussions his first year here but he never complains. He's just the best thing. I don't know what I'd do without him." She said her voice breaking.

"Oh Babette. What do you mean without him?" Lorelai said.

"I saw on Oprah a few weeks ago. She had on couples who lost a child. Most of the marriages went belly-up for the pain of it all. Even though they loved each other." She sniffed slightly.

"Babette, that is not going to happen to you." She said softly.

"I never thought a man would ever even want me." Babette admitted. "But then I met Morey. I saw him and I just...knew. It was love at first sight. When you know, you know right?" Babette said.

"Right." Lorelai smiled softly.

"I guess when you feel like that about someone, you shouldn't let anything stand in your way. Because it could make you so happy." Babette said. "I'm so glad I plucked up the courage to talk to Morey that day. I would never look back." She smiled.

"And you never will. You and Morey are solid. He adores you. Nothing will break that bond." Lorelai smiled.

Olivia wiped away some tears and walked back towards the living room. She glanced over at Jess again and she saw him watching Rory across the room. She then saw his expression when Rory went over and stood with Dean. She took a deep breath before heading over to her sister. "I need to talk to you." She said.

"Oh, sure, what's up?" Rory said.

"Not here." Olivia said. "Come on." She said glancing at Lane as she headed for the door.

"Liv, what are you doing?" Lane said concerned.

"I'm doing the right thing. Something I should have let happen from the beginning. I'm putting things right." Olivia said quietly.

"But..." Lane said.

"It's ok..." Olivia said. She glanced at Rory. "Go outside. I'll be right there." She said.

"Ok." Rory said confused but headed outside.

"Liv, are you sure about this?" Lane said.

"Me and Jess...it's never going to happen." Olivia said quietly. "But him and Rory...well, it could. But Rory deserves to know how he feels. Everyone deserves the chance of happiness."

"But..."

"It's fine. I'm ok." She gave her friend a small smile. "I need to do this. I need to do the right thing."

"Ok." Lane said softly.

Olivia took a deep breath and nodded before heading outside, finding Rory waiting there.

"What's going on? You're scaring me..." Rory said.

"I need to talk to you."

"About what?"

"About...Jess..." Olivia said.

 **So I hope you liked it! Please keep the reviews coming as I love reading what you think! :) Thanks again for your continued support. It really does mean so much to me. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you so much for all your support! I'm glad you're enjoying it! :) Here's the next chapter!**

Chapter 6

Olivia glanced across at Rory as they spent another surreal evening at the Gilmore Mansion. She hadn't said much to her since the revelation. She thought back to their conversation on the day of Cinnamon's wake.

 _"I need to talk to you. About Jess..." Olivia said._

 _"What about Jess?" Rory frowned._

 _"Come on." Olivia sighed leading her back to the Crap Shack._

 _They say down on the couch in the living room._

 _"So?" Rory said._

 _"Jess...he..uh..he told me something a few weeks back. Do you remember when he was acting weird when we were starting at Chilton?" She said._

 _"Yeah, he was just upset that he was going to lose us." Rory nodded. "What's this got to do with anything?"_

 _Olivia sighed. She glanced at her sister nervously. "That's not all he admitted to me."_

 _"Well, what else?" She said confused._

 _"I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier but I didn't want things to change and I...well, I freaked out." Olivia said._

 _"What are you talking about? What else did he say?" Rory exclaimed._

 _"He likes you." Olivia finally said._

 _"Well, yeah, I like him too." She said._

 _"No, I mean he likes you. He has feelings for you." She said._

 _"What?" Rory's eyes widened._

 _"It's true. He...he admitted it to me. I..uh..I begged him not to do anything, not to tell you. But...I realise that was wrong now. I...well, I was just freaked out but I know it was wrong and I realised you deserved to know." Olivia said._

 _"But...but...I've been talking to Dean! This is going to be so awkward now! Jess is like a brother to me, to us! How am I going to act normal around him now?" She exclaimed._

 _"I'm sorry. I just thought you deserved to know..." Olivia said._

 _"Well I wish I didn't!" Rory exclaimed._

"So what do we think of this?" Rory said bringing Olivia out of her daze.

Olivia looked at the fancy, huge vase and smiled slightly. "Where would we put it?" She said.

"I don't know." She shrugged but smiled slightly. "This is the strangest evening I've ever spent here."

"Same here." Olivia laughed. She sighed and glanced at her. "I'm sorry." She said. "You were right. I...I shouldn't have sprung it on you like I did. It wasn't fair."

Rory sighed. "No, you were only doing what you thought was best. I just...Jess liking me. It's..I guess it's just taking a bit of time to get my head round."

Olivia nodded. "Yeah..."

* * *

Olivia was at her locker at school when she felt a presence next to her. She looked and saw Tristan standing there. "Hi..."

"Happy Birthday." He said.

"What? It's not my birthday." She said.

"No, but it will be." He said taking out a piece of paper and starting to read. "On Friday at 4:03 in the morning, Lorelai Leigh Gilmore and Olivia Victoria Gilmore..."

"What is that?" Olivia said snatching it from her. "Oh my god! Who else got these?"

"I don't know. Everyone in our class, I think." He said.

"Great!" She mumbled.

"I guess I'll see you Friday, birthday girl." Tristan said.

"Why? Why do you keep doing this? This isn't even our actual party! You'd rather come to some fancy party our grandparents are putting on for us even though we don't want it? Probably because you know you'd never be invited to our actual one! Ok, yes, we kissed but it didn't mean anything! Why do you have to keep harassing me?" She exclaimed.

He frowned. "You really feel like that? You really believe it meant nothing?"

"I said it didn't I?" She said. She could have sworn she saw some hurt in his face. "I have to go." She mumbled before rushing off.

"Hey, did you see these?" Rory asked rushing up to her.

"Oh yeah, I saw them." Olivia sighed.

* * *

"Wow, nice faces you got on there." Lorelai said as the two of them entered Luke's and sat down with her.

"Coffee." Rory said.

"Bad day?" Lorelai asked.

"We've now used the word sucks so much that it's lost all meaning to us." Olivia said.

"Well maybe this will cheer you both up." She grinned.

"What?" Olivia said.

"You'll see." She grinned unzipping the garment bag and pulling out two dresses.

"What are those?" Rory grimaced.

"These are your party dresses." Lorelai said.

"So it's a Halloween party?" Olivia raised her eyebrows.

"Listen, you. So I'm shopping today with your grandmother and it's a whole three hours of 'Who are you buying that for, Mom? Have you met Rory and Olivia?' and then finally I talked and she listened and she wound up getting you both something I think you're really going to like." She smiled.

"Really?" Rory asked surprised, exchanging a glance with Olivia.

"Yes, really. And of course she insisted on buying us these dresses but I think I can do something with them to make them better." Lorelai said.

"Wow. I've never seen you so cheery after spending time with Grandma." Olivia said, glancing at Rory.

"Well it's been a long time since we got together and didn't end up fighting. It was refreshing. It wasn't exactly fun but I didn't get that shooting pain in my eye like I usually do." Lorelai said.

"Wow. That's great." Rory said.

"Yeah." Lorelai smiled.

"So I hear you're having a party Saturday." Luke said bringing coffee up to their table.

"Yeah. Mom's famous for her blowouts." Olivia grinned.

"The best one was their eighth birthday." Lorelai nodded.

"Oh, yeah, that was good." Rory nodded.

"The cops shut us down." Lorelai grinned.

"The cops shut down an eight year old's birthday party?" Luke asked.

"Yeah, remember, you were there!" Lorelai said.

"Oh..right..They arrested someone." He said.

"The clown." Olivia grinned.

"I don't want to hear any more of this." He shook his head, walking off.

"So, now tell me, why Miss Lemonheads today?" Lorelai asked.

"Oh nothing. I just got an A- on a French test that I should have gotten an A on." Rory said.

"And I'm just being grumpy." Olivia said.

"Hey Jess, you're coming to our party right?" Rory called.

Olivia glanced over to see that Jess had appeared from upstairs.

He glanced at her and then at Rory. "Uh..sure." He nodded.

"I'll be right back." Rory told her sister and their mom.

"Ok hon." Lorelai smiled.

Olivia watched her walk over to Jess and then disappear upstairs.

"Everything ok?" Jess asked as he glanced at Rory as they entered the apartment.

"I know." She said quietly.

"What?" He said.

"I know, Jess. About...your feelings." She said.

"What?" He said surprised.

"Liv..uh..Liv told me the other day." Rory said, glancing at him.

"Oh." Jess said glancing at the floor.

"Jess, I..."

"It's ok. I knew nothing could come of it. So don't worry about it ok?" He said embarrassed.

"Jess, that's not what I..." Rory said.

"It's fine. We're friends right? We're always going to be friends." He said.

"Oh..uh..right." Rory said glancing at him. "I...I guess I should get back downstairs."

"Sure." He nodded.

"You will come to our party though, won't you?" She said. "It won't be the same without you there."

He smiled slightly. "I'll be there." He said.

"Good." Rory smiled. "I'll...uh..I'll leave you to it then." She said before heading back downstairs.

* * *

"Happy Birthday, you two." Lorelai smiled softly as she snuck into their bedroom.

Olivia smiled and joined them on Rory's bed. "Hey." She said.

"I can't believe how fast you're growing up." Lorelai said.

"Really? Feels slow." Rory said.

"Trust me, it's fast. What do you think of your life so far?" She said.

"I think it's pretty good." Rory smiled.

"Any complaints?"

"I'd like that whole humidity thing to go away." Olivia said.

"Alright. I'll work on that." Lorelai smiled.

"So do we look older?" Rory asked.

"Oh, yeah. You walk into Denny's before 5, you've got yourself a discount." She joked.

"Good deal." Olivia said.

"So you know what I think?"

"What?"

"I think you're great, cool kids and the best friends a girl could have." Lorelai smiled softly.

"Right back at ya." Rory smiled.

"And it's so hard to believe that at exactly this time many moons ago, I was lying in exactly the same position." Lorelai said.

"Oh, boy. Here we go." Olivia smirked.

"Only I had a huge, fat stomach and big fat ankles and I was swearing like a sailor..."

"On leave." Rory sighed.

"On leave, right! And there I was..."

"In labour." Olivia said.

"And while some have called it the most meaningful experience of your life, to me it was something more akin to doing the splits on a crate of dynamite."

"I wonder if the Waltons ever did this." Rory joked.

"And I was screaming and swearing and being surrounded as I was by a hundred prominent doctors, I just assumed there was an actual use for the cup of ice chips they gave me." Lorelai said.

"There wasn't." Rory said.

"But pelting the nurses sure was fun."

"We love you, mom." Olivia smiled softly.

"Shh! I'm getting to the part where he sees your heads. So there I was..." She grinned.

* * *

"You should not have to go to school today." Lane said as they entered Luke's the following morning.

"Have to. Latin test." Rory said as they went up to the counter and sat down.

"Geez. Every day you have a test. When do you have time to learn anything to be tested on?" Lane said.

"Hey, wrong table." Luke said.

"Since when is there a right table?" Rory asked.

"Since the coffee cake I baked for you both and the stupid balloons I blew up are at that table, over there." Luke said gesturing to one of the tables.

"You blew up balloons for us?" Rory asked.

"Yep."

"Oh, Luke, you old softie." She grinned.

"He does it every year. Why are we always surprised?" Olivia grinned.

"I count to three, it's gone." Luke said smirking slightly.

"Thank you." Rory said quickly before the three of them went to sit down.

Olivia saw Jess appear from upstairs. She gave him a small smile but he just nodded in return. She saw his expression change though and she followed his gzae to where Dean had just come in. She watched as Dean glanced over at Rory and smiled at her, mouthing 'Happy Birthday' at her. She was surprised when Rory just gave him a small smile in return and then looked away. She watched as Dean looked somewhat confused but grabbed a coffee and then left.

"Hey Jess, come join us!" Rory smiled over at us.

Jess glanced at Olivia hesitantly before slowly walking over. "Happy birthday." He said.

"Thanks." Rory smiled.

"You want to sit down?" Olivia asked.

"Oh..uh..no, it's ok. I've got to get to school. I'll see you later." He said before heading out.

"That was weird." Lane said.

"What's going on between you and Jess?" Rory asked Olivia. "Is everything ok?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't it be?" Olivia said.

"Ok, sorry." Rory said.

Olivia sighed. "No, I'm sorry. I guess I'm just dreading the party at Grandma and Grandpa's." She said.

Rory sighed. "Yeah, me too. At least we have our proper party tomorrow to look forward to." She said. "You're still coming right?"

"Of course." Lane smiled. "I can't wait."

* * *

"Well some party this is." Olivia sighed as she stood with Rory at the side. "Noone even wants to be here."

"I know. It's so embarrassing." Rory said.

"I'm just going to go to the toilet. I'll meet you back by the food." She said.

"Sure." Rory nodded.

Olivia headed out through the foyer but stopped when she saw Tristan coming inside. "Tristan..." She said surprised. "What...what are you doing here?"

"I was invited." He said. "Or did you conveniently forget that?"

Olivia sighed. "Look, I'm sorry ok? I shouldn't have said what I did. I was just...well, you know..." She said.

"It's cool." Tristan shrugged. "Not like we're friends anyway so it shouldn't matter what you say to me."

"Tristan..." She said quietly.

"Guess I'll see you in there." He said going to walk out but stopped when they heard some raised voices and then Rory rushing out and heading upstairs.

"I...I better go after her." Olivia told Tristan.

"Sure." He nodded.

"We're having a party tomorrow at ours. You're...uh..you're welcome to come if you like." She said quietly.

"Maybe. Will have to see what I'm doing first." He said.

Olivia glanced at Tristan. "Right." She sighed. "I am sorry." She said quietly before following Rory.

* * *

Olivia sat on the couch the following evening, smiling at how many people had come to their party. It was always a good turnout. She smirked as she saw Michel sat in the corner, looking bored. "Enjoying the party, Michel?" She grinned.

"Oh yes, it's a hoot." He said dryly.

"Well, we're glad you could make it this time." She grinned.

"Hmm...your mom's not very good with no." He said.

Olivia smirked. "No, she's not." She said. "I'm going to get a drink, you want one?" She said.

"No, I'm fine." He said.

Olivia grinned before getting up and heading towards the kitchen. She stopped when she heard voices in their bedroom. She peeked in and saw Rory and Jess in there. So he had showed up then. She sighed. So much for coming to say hi, she thought. She stood at the door and listened to them.

"I'm glad you came." Rory smiled. "We both are."

"Well I couldn't miss it. It's your special day." Jess smirked slightly.

"And Liv's." Rory said.

"Right." He said.

Rory glanced at him. "What's going on between you two?" She said.

"Nothing." He said.

"Right, and pigs can fly." She said. "I thought you'd be happy that she told me..." She said hesitantly.

"I am...it's just...it's awkward..." Jess said.

"What do you mean?" Rory said confused. "Why would it be awkward between you and Liv?"

"No reason." He sighed.

"Ok..." She said.

"So..uh..I haven't seen Dean yet? When is he arriving?" Jess asked.

"He's not." Rory said.

"What?" He said surprised.

"I..uh..I couldn't do that to you." Rory shrugged.

"Do what?" Jess said.

"It didn't feel right now I know about...well, you know." She said.

"You didn't have to do that." Jess said but he felt touched.

Rory glanced at him. "Why didn't you just tell me?" She said quietly.

"Liv freaked out and then...well, you were already talking to Dean." He said.

"Well Liv obviously has changed her mind seeing as she told me about it." Rory pointed out. "Jess, I really care about you..." She said softly.

"Ror, it's fine. You don't have to..." Jess said.

"I just...I don't want our friendship ruined. I don't want to rush into things and then everything gets ruined. I value our friendship too much." She said honestly.

"I can get that." Jess sighed.

"Thanks for coming." Rory smiled softly.

"I wouldn't have missed it." He said.

Rory glanced at him for a moment and she felt herself starting to lean in when they heard a noise at the door. They both glanced over to see Olivia standing there awkwardly.

"Sorry." She said sheepishly. "I'll..uh..I'll leave you to it." She said before disappearing.

Rory glanced at Jess. "Go after her." She said.

"What?"

"Whatever's gone on between you, surely you can make things right." Rory said. "As we've both said, good friendships is hard to come by." She said. "Come on, Jess. It's our birthday." She said.

Jess sighed but nodded. "I'll..uh..We'll talk later?" He said.

"Definitely." Rory smiled softly.

Jess smiled before getting up and heading out of the room. He found Olivia in the kitchen. "Hey..." He said.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I was coming to get a drink and then I heard voices in there..." She said.

"It's ok." He said.

Olivia just nodded and grabbed a drink. "Well...I'll leave you to it." She said heading out.

"Liv, wait!" Jess said going after her.

"What?" She said.

"Can we talk?" He asked hesitantly.

Olivia glanced at him. "Sure." She said. "Come on." She said leading out to the front of the house and sat down on the porch swing.

Jess sat down next to her. He glanced at her. "I'm sorry." He said gruffly.

"You have nothing to be sorry for." Olivia sighed. "You were right. It was selfish of me to tell you how I felt. Especially...well, especially because I knew you didn't feel the same..." She said.

"It's not that I don't...I really care about you, Liv. You know that. I..." He sighed.

Olivia smiled softly. "I know." She said. "It's ok. I...I just want you to be happy." She said.

"I know." He said.

"If you and Rory...well, if that makes you both happy, then I'm happy for you." She said.

"Really?" Jess asked glancing at her.

"Of course." She smiled softly. "I'm..well, I'm just going to have to try and put my feelings aside." She said. She glanced at him. "I can't say it's going to be easy but I don't want to lose you, Jess. I don't want things to be awkward between us."

"You're never going to lose me." He smiled softly, putting his arm round her. "I promise."

Olivia smiled softly and leant her head on his shoulder. "Good." She said. "Because I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Here." He said handing her a bag.

"What's this?" She asked.

"Birthday present." He said.

Olivia opened the bag and unwrapped the present. "Jess..." She said stunned.

"Figured it was time you had one." He said.

"An ipod...But...how did you afford this?" She said surprised.

"I saved up my wages." Jess said.

"I can't believe you got this for me..." Olivia said softly. She looked at him. "Thank you."

"You deserve the best." He smiled.

"I really don't know what I'd do without you." She smiled, giving him a hug.

"Oh I think you'd manage." Jess smirked. "But hey, you might have someone in your corner..." He said.

"What?"

"Look.." He gestured over to someone who had just arrived.

"Tristan..." Olivia said surprised as she saw him walking towards them. "You came..." She said.

"You invited me." Tristan said. He glanced between them. "Am I interrupting something?" He asked.

"Oh..uh.." Olivia said glancing at Jess.

"No. Nothing." Jess said, getting up. "See you in there?" He smiled at her.

"Yeah, see you in there." She smiled softly. "And thanks. Again."

"Don't mention it." He said.

Olivia glanced at Tristan. "Hey..." She smiled. "I'm..uh..I'm glad you could come."

"You are?" Tristan asked.

Olivia sighed. "Look, I'm sorry. I've been going through some stuff and I shouldn't have taken it out on you. But..uh..it's been sorted now. Well...I think it has. But I am sorry." She said sincerely.

"Ah don't worry." He said. "Can't say I've been innocent in all of this anyway. I shouldn't have pushed you so much. The kiss...I shouldn't have pushed you to talk about it. I mean, it meant nothing so what's there to talk about?"

She sighed. "I shouldn't have said that either." She said, sitting back down. She watched as Tristan hesitantly sat down next to her. "It obviously meant something because kisses don't normally mean nothing. But...it...it shouldn't have happened when it did. I was...well I didn't realise at the time but I was going through some stuff. Wrestling with my feelings, let's say." She admitted.

"About what?" He asked.

"About...uh..." She said glancing towards the house. "It doesn't matter."

Tristan noticed her glance. "Oh." He said understanding. "You like him, don't you?" He said.

"Who?"

"That guy you were just with." He said.

Olivia glanced at him. "Yeah." She admitted. "But nothing's ever going to happen."

"No?" Tristan questioned.

"He doesn't feel the same and he likes...someone else." Olivia said.

"Sorry." Tristan said awkwardly.

"No, it's fine. Jess...we've known him since we were five. It's just...weird. But it's sorted now." She said. "We're really good friends. But that's all we're going to be."

"Really?" He asked.

"Yeah." She said.

"And you're...ok with that?" Tristan asked.

Olivia smiled softly at him. "I'd rather keep him as a friend than lose him completely." She said.

Tristan nodded. "So..the kiss..."

Olivia laughed slightly. "You don't give up, do you?"

"Oh come on, admit it. Your life would be dull without me." He smirked.

Olivia smirked slightly. "Well that bit's true." She said.

"Liv? Oh there you are! Come on, mom's bringing out the cake!" Rory grinned at her.

"Coming!" Olivia grinned. She glanced at Tristan. "Coming in?" She asked.

"Would that be ok?" He asked.

She smiled. "Come on." She said. "You can be on my side in the food fight!" She grinned.

"Food fight?" He raised her eyebrows.

"Oh yes!" She grinned. "I guess there's some things you still don't know about me."

"I guess so." Tristan smirked. "Well, lead the way." He said.

 **So I hope you liked it! Please keep the reviews coming as I love reading what you all think! Thanks again for all your support! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you for all your support for this story! If you're enjoying it, please do drop me a review to let me know. I'd love to know what you think. :) Just to say I'm going to my Grandma's tomorrow until Sunday so I may not be able to update until Sunday evening or Monday. I hope you enjoy this chapter in the meantime. :)**

Chapter 7

Lorelai carried food and drinks and slid into her seat next to Rory and Olivia at Miss Patty's. "What did I miss?" She whispered.

"Taylor wants the no-parking zone in front of his store removed. He says his customers are being unfairly ticketed." Rory told her.

"No, it's just because he wants to park there all day." Lorelai said.

"Definitely." Olivia agreed.

"He's the only person who parks there anyway." Jess said from the other side of Rory.

"Except that one time when mom had the sudden urge for pop tarts." Olivia smirked.

"I was parked there for two minutes!" She defended herself.

They returned their focus to the mayor who had started talking. "As you all know, this coming Friday is the anniversary of the legendary Battle of Stars Hollow." He said to some applause.

"Keep an eye on Luke." Lorelai whispered with a twinkle in her eye as she glanced across to where he was sat next to Jess.

"Penny will be circulating a sign up sheet for those of you who would like to participate in the reenactment of foresaid battle." The mayor continued.

"He's turning red." Rory smirked.

"Ooh!" Lorelai grinned.

"Alright. It was a frigid November night, some 224 years ago." The mayor said.

"He's shifting in his seat." Olivia commented.

"The brave Stars Hollow militia stood in wait for the Red Coats."

"He's adjusting the cap." Jess smirked.

"You're meant to be on my side." Luke grumbled, glancing at them all who were grinning up at him.

"How'd you work that out?" Jess said.

"Because you're family." Luke said.

"Huh. I didn't know that." Jess smirked. "Guess the Gilmores have had more influence over me than I thought."

"Traitor." Luke said.

Olivia saw the smile exchanged between him and Rory. She looked away slightly and focused on the mayor again.

"Tired and hungry, twelve proud men took their positions in the town's square, braving the elements..." The mayor continued.

"He's fighting the urge, he's fighting the urge!" Lorelai exclaimed.

"Come on Luke!" Olivia grinned.

"...and imminent death in their valiant efforts..."

"Oh, for god's sake, do we have to go through this every damn year?!" Luke exclaimed standing up.

"Yes!" Lorelai grinned.

"And the urge wins by a long shot!" Rory laughed.

"I thought we were here to discuss town issues." Luke said.

"This is a town issue." Taylor said.

"Excuse me, who's talking?" The mayor asked.

"It's me, Harry, Luke. You've known me since I was 5 years old." Luke said.

"Oh, Luke, yes. Sit down. Now as I was saying, twelve heroic men assembled with guns drawn ready to meet their maker." Harry continued.

"Ooh burn!" Jess smirked.

"What are you talking about? Twelve guys stood in a row all night?" Luke exclaimed again.

"Waiting for the Red Coats."

"Who never showed!" Luke said.

"Now just a minute!"

"Twelve guys stood in a row all night waiting for an enemy that never showed. They got stood up. They should've been wearing prom dresses!" He said causing Lorelai, Olivia and Rory to laugh and even got a smirk out of Jess.

"I've had just about enough of this." Taylor said.

"Sit down, Taylor." Luke said.

"Menace." He said.

"Suck up." Luke retorted.

"Five bucks says somebody ends up in a headlock." Lorelai grinned.

"You're so on!" Olivia laughed.

"Have any of you ever considered the fact that you're glorifying a war we fought so we could keep land that we stole?" Luke said.

"That's actually a good point." Rory said as Lorelai and Olivia nodded.

"If you don't like it here in America, why don't you go stand in line for toilet paper in the USSR?" Harry said.

"Because there isn't a USSR anymore?" Jess butted in.

"So now you speak up?" Luke glanced at his nephew.

"Don't say I'm never on your side." Jess shrugged.

Luke smirked slightly. "I'll be sure to remember that." He said dryly.

"A sense of community is so important, isn't it?" Lorelai joked.

"It's what made our country great." Rory nodded.

"Absolutely!" Olivia grinned.

* * *

"Thanks for letting me hang out here for a bit." Olivia said as she and Lane sat in Lane's secret wardrobe the following day after school, playing some cds.

"No problem. Your appearance was welcome, trust me." Lane joked. "So did you just come over to listen to music or was there another reason?"

"Rory and Jess were hanging out at ours." Olivia admitted.

"Ah." Lane said understanding. "And..uh..how's that going?" She asked glancing at her.

Olivia shrugged. "I don't know." She said honestly. "They've been spending more time than usual together and it seems like Rory hasn't been talking to Dean as much so...well, I don't know..."

"So they haven't...started anything yet?" Lane asked.

"I think they're taking it slowly." Olivia told her.

"And how are you feeling about it all?" She asked cautiously.

Olivia sighed. "I'm coping." She said.

"Yeah?"

"Well...I'm trying to cope." She sighed. "It's just...weird. I guess I never thought I'd be feeling these feelings and I never thought Jess and Rory would...well, you know."

"I can imagine." Lane nodded.

"I just needed a bit of time out of the house." Olivia admitted.

"Well, you're always welcome here." Lane smiled.

"Thanks Lane." She smiled softly.

"What about Tristan? Anything going on there?" Lane asked interested.

"Not really." Olivia said. "He's a friend..."

"Just a friend?"

"I just...I think I need to sort my feelings out before I do anything. It's not fair for me to lead Tristan on if my heart's not in it." She said.

"True." Lane said. "But do you like him?"

"He's a friend." Olivia said. "I know a lot of people think he's a jerk but...I don't know...I guess he's shown his other side to me. He can be very sweet and thoughtful. Sometimes I think...well, you know. But I'm just so confused at the moment. I need to sort my head out first."

"Fair enough." Lane said. "Will this help?" She asked showing her a new cd.

"Put it on!" Olivia grinned.

* * *

"When will your mom be home?" Jess asked as he joined Rory on the couch as she turned the tv on.

"Not til late." Rory said. "They've got a big conference there this evening so she has to be around for it."

"And Liv?" He asked.

"I don't know." She furrowed her brow. "She just said she was going to see Lane."

Jess nodded. "Ok."

Rory glanced at him. "Have you and her made up?" She asked.

"What?" He said glancing at her.

"Come on, Jess. I know you two were going through something. It was obvious." Rory said. "Was it...was it because she told me about how you felt? Because I think she was only trying to help..."

"It was nothing. We're good." Jess said, knowing that Olivia would probably not want her feeling public knowledge.

"Are you sure?" She asked, biting her lip. "If...if this was to work out, I don't want any awkwardness between us. It would just be weird."

Jess glanced at her. "You want this to work out?" He asked.

Rory blushed slightly. "You know I care about you, Jess. A lot. And I don't know...maybe something could happen. But I want you and Liv to be ok."

"We are." He nodded.

"Really?"

"Really. We're good." Jess repeated.

"Ok." Rory said quietly. "This is going to affect her as well though. It will change the friendship we all had."

"It doesn't have to." He said.

"Jess..." She sighed. "It will change. You must know that."

Jess sighed. "I guess. A bit." He conceded.

"I just don't want her to feel weird about it. That's all." Rory said.

Jess sighed. "Liv and I...well, we had a disagreement. But we're good now. Honestly. We talked. At your birthday party." He said.

"She told me you got her the ipod. She was touched." Rory smiled softly.

"She deserved one." Jess shrugged.

"It was still really sweet of you. And what with the first edition of Jane Eyre for me, you must have used all your money on us." Rory said.

"You're worth it." Jess said.

Rory smiled softly. "Have I thanked you for it yet?"

"Many times." He smirked.

"Well thank you. Again." Rory smirked. "It was really sweet of you."

"And again I'll say you're worth it." He smiled.

Rory smiled and glanced at him. She held his gaze for a moment before blushing slightly and returning her focus onto the tv.

* * *

"Urghh, you've got to be joking me..." Olivia exclaimed as she saw a bus leaving the bus stop at Chilton. "Great!" She muttered as she pulled her hood up on her jacket as the snow started falling. She sighed and sat down on the bench, knowing the next bus would be a while yet. She looked up as a car slowed down infront of her.

"Need a ride?" A familiar voice said.

She saw Tristan smirking at her with the window rolled down. "I'm fine." She rolled her eyes.

"Don't look fine." He commented.

"I'll just wait for the next bus. It's no big deal." She said.

"Come on, you're freezing. Let me give you a ride home." Tristan said.

Olivia glanced at him. "I..."

"I promise no funny business." He smirked, raising his hands in the air.

Olivia smirked slightly. "Hmm...why don't I believe that?" She said.

"Because you know me." Tristan grinned. "Come on, I've got an awesome heater in here and I'll let you choose what music we listen to."

Olivia bit her lip before glancing towards the school. She had got out her last lesson a bit early so Rory wouldn't be out just yet. She glanced back at Tristan. "I get to choose the music for the whole journey?" She said.

"Scout's honour." He smirked.

"I bet you were never a scout." Olivia laughed as she got up and got into the passenger's seat.

"You'll never know." He grinned as he started driving away.

* * *

"The biggest cup of coffee please!" Lorelai exclaimed as she collapsed onto a stool at the counter at Luke's.

"Long day?" Luke said as he poured her coffee.

"The longest!" Lorelai said. "And Rory's stuck at my parents' house tonight because of the snow. You haven't seen Olivia, have you?"

"No, why?" Luke frowned.

Lorelai sighed. "She was let out early according to Rory but she said she had already left when Rory left school and headed straight to my parents' house. I thought maybe she'd come here to hang with Jess?"

"Haven't seen her." Luke said.

"Oh." Lorelai frowned slightly. She glanced at the snow which was falling heavily outside now. She pulled out her cell. "Where is she then? I hope she's not stuck in this somewhere."

"Call her." Luke said.

"What?" She said surprised.

"Call her."

"In here? But..." Lorelai said.

"It's an emergency. Call her." Luke said softly.

Lorelai smiled gratefully at him. "Thanks Luke." She dialled her daughter's number and let out a breath when she answered. "Oh thank god! Hon, where are you? I'm getting worried here."

"Sorry." Olivia said. "I..uh..I got out early."

"Yeah Rory mentioned that but she assumed you'd got the bus back." She said.

"Tristan offered me a ride..." Olivia said hesitantly.

"Tristan?" She said surprised.

"Yeah, I missed a bus by like a second so he offered me a lift. But the snow was really coming down and he said it would be too dangerous to drive on the highways in it." She said. "It was really bad, mom. Is it bad there?"

"Yeah." Lorelai said. "So...where are you?"

"I..uh..I'm at Tristan's." She admitted.

"You're at Tristan's?" Lorelai repeated slowly, trying to get her head round the fact one of her daughters was at a boy's house. Someone she didn't know too well either.

"I was about to call you. Apparently this storm's meant to go on all night so I don't know how I'll be able to get home..." Olivia said nervously.

"Ok..." Lorelai said slowly.

"Tristan has offered me his bed for the night." She finally admitted.

"His bed for the night?" She said.

"Mom! Can you just stop repeating everything I'm saying?" Olivia exclaimed.

"Sorry. I just..uh..so you're staying with Tristan for the night?" Lorelai tried to clarify.

"His parents are here and they said it's ok. Tristan said he'd sleep on the couch downstairs." Olivia said. "I know it's weird but I honestly don't know how I would get back. I'm scared I'll get into an accident or something if I risk it."

Lorelai sighed. "No, you're right. It's best you stay there."

"Really?"

"I want you to be safe." Lorelai said. "So you'll be by yourself in Tristan's room?"

"Mom!" Olivia exclaimed.

"What? Hon, you've got to understand how this is looking for me. I don't even know Tristan that well and suddenly you're staying the night at hers. I'm allowed to worry a little." She said.

Olivia sighed. "It's not like that. He's just helping me out. As a friend."

"A friend?" Lorelai questioned.

"A friend." Olivia nodded.

"Ok." Lorelai said after a moment.

"Ok?"

"Ok." Lorelai repeated. "But let me know when you're on your way back tomorrow morning ok?"

"I will." She promised.

"And please..." Lorelai started.

"Mom, I'm begging you not to finish that sentence." Olivia said.

"Just...be safe." She sighed.

"I will. Bye mom." She said.

"Bye hon." She sighed before hanging out. She glanced at Luke. "She's at Tristan's." She told him.

"Who's Tristan?" He asked.

"A guy from school." Lorelai said.

"A guy?" Luke frowned.

"A friend. Apparently." She said.

"You don't believe her?" He asked.

"I don't know. I don't know Tristan that well but she does talk about him a lot." Lorelai shrugged. "She said his parents are there and that he would be be on the couch downstairs. I trust her. I just...it's just a weird. They're 16 now. They're the same age I was when I...well, you know." She said glancing down at her coffee.

"They're sensible." Luke assured her.

"I know." She said.

"It'll be fine. She'll be back tomorrow morning." He said.

"Am I just being a paranoid mother?" Lorelai sighed.

"No, you're being a concerned mother. That's completely different. Olivia's sensible. I'm sure it will be fine." He said. "And if that Tristan guy tries anything, I'll hunt him down myself and kill him." He said.

Lorelai smiled slightly. "Thanks Luke." She said softly. "I best get home." She said.

"Do you want to stay here for the night?" Luke asked.

"What?" She said surprised.

"Well..uh..it's really bad out there." Luke said gesturing outside.

Lorelai looked and saw a real blizzard going on outside. "Oh crap!" She said.

"You're welcome to stay." He said. "If you want." He added.

Lorelai glanced outside and couldn't help but worry about getting her jeep started and driving back to hers. She glanced back at Luke. "Are you sure? I don't want to impose."

"It's fine. I'll take the couch." He said smirking slightly.

Lorelai laughed at his joke. "Ok. Well thank you." She smiled softly.

"No problem." He said. "Let me just close everything down and I'll be up. You can head up if you like. Jess is already up there."

"Ok thanks." She said.

* * *

Olivia and Rory got home the following morning around the same time. "You're kidding! You've got to be kidding!" Olivia laughed.

"No joke! Grandma and Grandpa both ate the frozen pizza and they loved it!" Rory laughed.

"I can't believe I missed it!" Olivia said as they walked up the porch steps.

"Wait, before we go in...do you have a minute?" Rory said.

"Sure." Olivia said following her to the porch swing.

"I just..uh..wanted to talk to you about something." She said nervously.

"Shoot." Olivia said.

"Well..uh..you know how Jess and I have been meeting up more together and talking about...well, you know..." Rory said.

"Yeah..." Olivia said quietly, trying to block out the pit of dread in her stomach.

"Well I think something could happen between us. I mean, when you told me about how he felt, I was shocked. You know I was. But then we started hanging out more and I realised how much I really do enjoy spending time with him. Well you know that because we've all be friends for so many years now and you know that feeling because you two are so close as well..." Rory rambled quickly.

"Rory..." Olivia said softly.

Rory sighed. "If it would be too weird, I'll tell him no. He understands that our friendship comes first." She said. "If it would change things too much between the three of us, I'll make sure nothing happens."

"But you want it to?" She said quietly, biting her lip.

"I...think so." Rory admitted.

"Well...then you shouldn't let me stand in your way." Olivia forced a smile.

"Liv, you're my sister. If it would be too weird..." Rory said.

 _'You don't know the half of it,'_ she thought. She glanced at her sister and sighed. "I guess it would be a bit weird to start with..." She said. "But...I'm sure I'd get used to it."

"Really?" Rory said quietly.

"Ror, if this is going to make you happy, then I'm happy for you." Olivia said softly.

"You're sure?" She asked.

"I'm sure." Olivia smiled. "Come on, let's go inside before mom thinks I've run away with Tristan."

Rory smirked slightly. "And how exactly was last night at Tristan's?"

"It was fine. Tristan was...Tristan." Olivia shrugged innocently.

"Uh huh..." Rory smirked.

"Why don't we talk about the fact that mom stayed at Luke's last night?" Olivia smirked, causing Rory to laugh. "Come on. Let's go get the goss." She grinned heading towards the front door.

* * *

Rory walked up to the apartment door, took a deep breath and knocked on it. She smiled nervously when Jess opened it. "Hey..." She said.

"Hey?" Jess said surprised to see her so early in the morning. "Did I leave something at yours or...?" He asked.

"Uh..no...but I sort of forgot something." She said hesitantly.

"What?" He asked.

"This." Rory said stepping forward and then slowly leaning in and kissing him.

* * *

Olivia walked up to the front door, took a deep breath and knocked on it. She smiled nervously when Tristan opened it. "Hey..." She said.

"Hey?" Tristan said surprised to see her so early in the morning. "Did you forget something or...?" He asked.

"Yeah..actually." She said hesitantly.

"What?" He asked.

"This." Olivia said stepping forward and then slowly leaning in and kissing him.

* * *

Lorelai walked up to the diner door, took a deep breath and knocked on it. She smiled nervously as Luke opened it. "Hey..." She said.

"Hey?" Luke said surprised to see her so early in the morning, before he had opened the diner. "Is everything ok?" He asked.

"Yeah...I just..uh..wanted to thank you for last night. For letting me stay here." She said.

"Oh. Well you don't need to thank me. There was no way I was letting you try and get home in that blizzard." He said.

"I know." Lorelai said softly. "You're always looking out for me. I realised that last night when you really did give up your bed for me even though you had to get up earlier than me."

"It's no big deal." Luke shrugged.

"It is. You're always there for me. Always." Lorelai said softly.

"I try." He said gruffly.

She took a deep breath. "Luke..." She said.

"Yeah?" He said.

Lorelai nervously stepped forward before slowly leaning in and kissing him.

 **So I hope you liked it! Which blossoming relationships are you liking and are looking forward to seeing develop? Which aren't you liking? Which would you actually quite like to see? I'm open to all suggestions and would love to know what you think so please keep reviewing! :) Thanks again for all your support! :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Thank you so much for all your support! I'm really glad you're enjoying it. :) Here's the next chapter! :)**

Chapter 8

"Well...that was unexpected..." Tristan said.

"Good unexpected?" Olivia asked nervously.

"There's no complaint from me." He smirked.

Olivia blushed slightly. "I just...well I don't know..." She said.

"Would you like to come in?" He asked.

"We need to get to school." She said.

"We have time." He said.

"Well...ok then." Olivia smiled slightly and she followed him inside.

* * *

"Well...that was unexpected..." Jess said.

"Sorry." Rory said nervously.

"You don't need to apologise. It was nice." He said.

"Nice? That's all I get?" Rory raised her eyebrows.

"It was the best kiss I've ever had." He smirked.

"That's meant to make me feel better? You've only ever kissed me!" Rory smirked.

"You're still the best." Jess said. "Want to come in?"

Rory glanced at her watch and saw that she had some time. "Sure." She smiled, slightly nervously.

* * *

"Well...that was..." Luke said after a moment.

"Unexpected?" Lorelai smiled nervously.

"Yeah...unexpected." He said, glancing at her. "But good. Really good." He added.

"Yeah?" She said.

"Yeah." He said smiling slightly. "Want some coffee?" He asked.

"I'd love some." Lorelai smiled softly, following him inside. She sat down at the counter just as her cell rang. She checked the ID and groaned, declining the call.

"What is it?" Luke said hearing her groan.

"My mother." She said. "She's not ruining this moment for me."

"So it was a moment?" Luke questioned glancing at her.

"Did I just imagine us kissing?" She joked. "Because I think that was a pretty big moment." She said.

Luke smiled slightly. "No. It was." He said softly.

"I think so too." She smiled softly as her cell rang again. "Can't she leave me alone?" She groaned answering this time. "Hello mother, to what do I owe this pleasure?" She said. Luke glanced up as he heard her tone change. "What? What do you mean collapsed? Where is he? No, I'll be right there! I'll leave right now! Yeah ok, bye!" She said hanging up.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"My dad...he's collapsed or something." Lorelai said still in shock.

"What?" Luke said shocked.

"I don't know. My mom just said he collapsed and that he's been taken to hospital. I need to go. I need to be there. I need to call the girls!" She said dialling another number. "Rory, are you at school yet? What do you mean you're upstairs?" She said hanging up. "Rory!" She called.

Rory and Jess appeared from upstairs. "Mom, what are you doing here?" She said.

"What are you doing here?" Lorelai said. "I thought you'd gone to school."

"I..uh..needed to borrow a book from Jess first." Rory lied. "I was just heading to Chilton now."

"Hon, your Grandpa's in hospital." Lorelai said softly.

"What?" She said her eyes widening. "What do you mean, in hospital? Is he ok?"

"I don't know the details but apparently he collapsed. I'm going to head to the hospital now. I can give you a lift to school on the way if you want." She said.

"No, I'm coming with you." Rory said.

"Hon, you shouldn't miss school. Your Grandpa wouldn't want that." She said.

"I don't care. I'm coming with you." Rory said.

Lorelai glanced at her. She knew her daughters had grown close to their grandparents. "Ok. Where's your sister?"

"I don't know."

"She didn't go with you?"

"No." Rory shook her head.

"We'll call her on the way. I'll drive you. Come on." Luke said.

"What?" Lorelai said surprised.

"You think I'd just abandon you when your dad's in hospital?" Luke said. "I know what it's like, remember?"

"Thank you." Lorelai said softly.

"You get to school ok?" Luke told Jess.

"No way." Jess said.

"Jess..." Luke warned not in the mood to argue.

"You're going to support Lorelai, I'm going to support Rory and Liv." He said.

"Jess..." Luke sighed.

"You taught me to always be there for friends and family. Rory and Liv are both. Come on, Luke. I won't be able to concentrate at school." Jess said.

"Ok. Just this once." Luke said. "Come on."

Jess gave Rory a reassuring smile and followed them.

* * *

"Oh my god!" Olivia said as she hung up her phone.

"What?" Tristan said concerned.

"My Grandpa's in hospital!"

"What?" He said shocked.

"I don't know. My mom doesn't know everything but her and Rory are on the way to the hospital now. I need to call a cab. I need to get there!" She said worried.

"You don't need to call a cab." Tristan said.

"What? Yes I do! I need to get to the hospital!" She exclaimed.

"I agree. But I'll take you." He said.

"What? No, Tristan, I can't make you skip school for me." Olivia said.

"Since when do you think I actually attend all my classes anyway?" He joked.

"Tristan..."

"I'll give you a lift and then if you want me to leave, I'll leave. Ok?"

Olivia glanced at him before nodding slowly. "Ok." She said quietly. She blinked back tears as she followed Tristan out. "Tristan, I..." She said tremulously.

"I know." Tristan said softly. "Let's go."

* * *

"Ok, we're supposed to follow the blue line, around the corner and then we should be..." Luke trailed off as they reached yet another corridor at the hospital.

"Where's the scarecrow when you need him?" Lorelai said.

"Ok, we have to ask someone else." Luke said.

"No! We just have to pick one." Lorelai said.

"Well we can't just wander around here aimlessly." Luke said.

"Luke, listen to me, somewhere in this hospital are my mother and my father. Now I know I don't get along with them but there has to be some sort of intuition, some sort of blood bond that will somehow lead me to them." Lorelai said.

"Mom..." Rory said.

"That's crazy." Luke said just as they heard voices.

"And that's Emily." Lorelai said and they all walked round the corner and found her arguing with the receptionist. "Mom!"

"You came!" Emily said surprised.

"Of course I came! You called me! How's dad?" She asked.

"That's what I've been trying to find out but this woman keeps pestering me with idiotic questions like 'What's the number of my insurance policy and how long have we had it.'" Emily said.

"I need to get this information." The nurse said.

"You need to get sensitivity training!" Emily snapped.

"Well, what if I fill out this information and you can go find someone who can tell us how my dad is." Lorelai suggested.

"I'm not supposed to..."

"Or, I could go and you can stay here and continue to discuss this with my mother?" Lorelai said.

The nurse glanced at Emily. "I'll go." She said.

"Thank you." Lorelai said turning to her mom. "What happened, mom?"

"I don't know what happened. He was hot and he went to turn down the thermostat and then..." She trailed off seeing Luke, Jess and Rory.

"Rory, why aren't you at school?" She asked.

"I wanted to see Grandpa." Rory said quietly.

"You shouldn't miss school. Lorelai, why would you let her miss school?" Emily frowned.

"I didn't want her to. Mom, you know how close the girls have become to dad. I thought it would be ok. As a one off." Lorelai said.

Emily saw the worried look on her granddaughter's face. "Of course." She said her face softening. She glanced at Luke and Jess. "You brought escorts." She commented.

"It's Luke and Jess, mom. They're friends." She said missing the slightly hurt expression on Luke's face. "Luke offered to give us a lift. Olivia's on her way as well."

"Very well." Emily said.

"Is Dr. Reynolds here?" She asked.

"Yes, Joshua got her a while ago. He was supposed to come back the minute he knew something but he hasn't been back yet." Emily said.

"Well let's go find him."

"You can't find him! You can't find anyone! Everyone just keeps disappearing behind those doors!" Emily exclaimed.

"Well come on, let's go." Lorelai said disappearing through the doors.

"I didn't know you could do that." She said following her daughter.

"I'll wait here." Luke said.

"Me too." Rory said and the three of them sat down.

"You ok?" Jess said softly.

Rory glanced at him. "I don't want him to..."

"He won't." Jess said.

"I was just getting to know him. I don't this to take that away..."

"It won't." Jess said putting his arm round her. "He'll be fine."

"Rory!" Olivia's voice called.

Rory got up when she saw her sister rush in, giving her a hug. "How did you get...Oh...hi..." She said seeing Tristan trailing behind.

"Uh..I bumped into Tristan on the way to school. I was with him when mom called. He offered to drive me." Olivia said.

"Oh, well thanks." She said.

"No problem." Tristan said.

"How's Grandpa? Have you seen him?" Olivia asked.

"No. Mom and Grandma have gone to see if they can find out anymore." Rory said quietly.

"I don't want him to..." Olivia said quietly.

"Me neither." Rory said quietly. She smiled tremulously. "He's strong. He'll be ok."

"I hope so." Olivia blinked back some tears.

"Hey, make sure you tell him that when you see him." Luke spoke for the first time. "People like to hear that you don't want them to die." He smiled softly. "I told my dad that." He admitted.

Rory and Olivia glanced at him. Luke never really spoke about his dad. He had died the year before they had met Luke so they had never met him. "Sorry." Olivia said quietly.

"You don't need to apologise." Luke assured them. "He'll be fine."

They nodded and sat back down to wait for news, Rory next to Jess and Olivia next to Tristan.

* * *

Later that morning, they were all still at the hospital waiting for the test results to come back. Lorelai, Olivia and Rory came back with some coffee they had found from a machine and sat back down outside the room where Richard was. "Geez, are you ok?" Lorelai asked Luke, who didn't look too good.

"Yeah, I'm just not big on hospitals you know the smell, people being wheeled by with tubes sticking out of them, you know, drainage, fluids, gaping holes..." He said.

"Ok, listen, why don't you go home?" Lorelai said.

"You want me to go?" Luke asked.

"Well no, but you don't look so good." She said.

"Thanks." He said dryly.

"That's not what I meant. You know you always look good." She said.

"Yeah?" He said smiling slightly.

"I mean you always look...healthy." She said blushing slightly.

"Ok." Luke smirked, enjoying teasing her.

"But you don't look so healthy now. Now you look..."

"Unhealthy?"

Lorelai smiled slightly. "Yes."

"Ok." He chuckled.

"Oh what? So I said you look good. We're not in 5th grade. You look good. Big deal." She blushed. "Stop staring at me." She said.

* * *

"How are you holding up?" Jess asked Rory.

"I'm ok." She said. "It was nice to see him. To see he was ok. Well, not ok. You know what I mean."

"I know." He said.

"I'm sorry we didn't get to talk about...earlier..." Rory said quietly.

"It's ok. We can talk later." Jess assured her.

She glanced at him. "I'd like that." She smiled shyly. "I..uh..I talked to Olivia about us."

"Yeah?" He said intrigued.

"Yeah. I wanted to make sure that she was ok before anything potentially happened between us. I needed to make sure she was ok with it." Rory admitted.

"And...what did she say?" Jess asked cautiously.

"That she was happy if I was. If this is what would make us both happy, then why should she stand in the way." Rory said.

Jess glanced over at Olivia who caught his eye for a moment before going back to her conversation with Tristan. "That's sweet." He said.

Rory smiled. "It made me feel a bit better about my decision." She admitted. She glanced at him. "I think we may have something."

"I think it could be something great too." Jess smiled. He glanced around. "But now's not the time. Let's wait until we find out your grandpa's going to be ok."

Rory smiled. "Ok." She said softly. She glanced over at her sister who was smiling at something Tristan had obviously said to her. "I feel like something's going on between those two." She said.

Jess glanced over. "Yeah?"

"I don't know. I could be wrong. But she does spend a lot of time with him and she was coincidentally with him when mom called her this morning." Rory said. She shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe it's twin intuition or something. I just hope she knows what she's doing."

"What do you mean?" Jess frowned.

"I don't know. I just...I never thought she'd go for someone like Tristan. I know she's said he's got this other side to him but I've never seen it." Rory sighed. "I just don't want her to get hurt."

"I'm sure she knows what she's doing." Jess said glancing over at them. "Liv has good judgement. You'll just have to trust her."

"Yeah...I guess..." Rory said.

* * *

"So...we didn't get the chance to talk about earlier..." Olivia said, glancing at Tristan.

"We'll talk later. Now, I'm just here for you. Whatever you need." He said.

Olivia smiled softly. "Why are you only like this with me?" She asked.

"What do you mean?" He said.

"You're never this nice to anyone else. Why me?" She said.

"Thought that was obvious." Tristan smirked.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "And there's your cocky side again. Can't you just be genuine for once?"

"I thought I was being." He said. He sighed when she gave him a look. "Ok fine. I like you. Ever since I first saw you at Chilton, I knew you were different." He said.

Olivia glanced at him. "You have quite the rep at school..." She said.

"I know." He said, glancing at her. "But I feel like you might be able to look past that seeing as what happened this morning..." He said.

Olivia blushed slightly. "I don't know. I enjoy spending time with you. I really do. There's just some...things I need to work through." She said glancing over at Jess.

Tristan followed her gaze. "Ok." He said.

"Ok?" She questioned.

"We can take it as slow as you want. You're worth the wait." He said sincerely.

Olivia smiled softly. "I feel like you may be as well..." She said, leaning her head on his shoulder, just as Emily appeared.

"Mom? Is everything ok?" Lorelai asked.

"It was angina." Emily said looking very relieved. "With a change of diet and exercise, Dr Reynolds believes he will be just fine." She told them.

"Oh thank god..." Lorelai said, letting out a breath.

Emily watched as her daughter and both granddaughters sought comfort from their so called respective friends. She saw the closeness between them all and she realised that she really didn't know much about them at all. She smiled softly as her granddaughters came to hug her and she even returned the smile Lorelai sent in her direction. For now, she was just relieved and grateful that Richard was going to be ok.

 **So I hope you enjoyed it! :) Please keep reviewing as I love reading what you all think! Thanks again for all your support! It really does mean so much to me! :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**Thank you so much for all your support so far! I'm really enjoying writing this story so I hope you're enjoying reading it. :) Here's the next chapter! :)**

Chapter 9

"Hello?" Jess called.

"Do you come bearing pizza?" Lorelai called.

"I'm not an idiot." Jess smirked coming into the living room with three pizza boxes.

"Then get in here." She grinned.

"Hey." Rory smiled at him.

"Hey." Jess smiled. He glanced at Olivia. "Hey."

"Hi." Olivia gave him a small smile.

"Sit, you're missing it." Lorelai said.

"What are we watching?" Jess asked.

"The incomparable Donna Reed Show." Lorelai said.

"Ah of course." Jess nodded, going to sit next to Rory.

"So is Luke closing up tonight?" Lorelai asked casually.

"Yup. He said he's sorry he couldn't make it." Jess said.

"Oh it's fine. I hardly think this is Luke's idea of fun." Lorelai said. She saw all three teenagers smirking at her. "What?"

"Oh come on, mom. You can't say there's nothing going on between you and Luke. We've noticed things." Olivia said.

"Like what?" She said.

"The more intense looks, the subtle loving smiles, the fact that you two can't take your eyes off each other these days." Olivia joked.

"Ok, well if we're talking about this, don't say I haven't noticed you two's closeness." Lorelai gestured between Rory and Jess.

"Mom!" Rory said blushing slightly.

"What? Stop making it so obvious then." Lorelai shrugged.

"It's...early days." Rory blushed.

"So there is something there then..." Lorelai said glancing at them.

"Maybe." Rory said awkwardly.

"Hey, less talking. We're missing it!" Olivia said gesturing to the tv.

* * *

Lorelai saw her daughter watching her as they sat in the diner after she had just persuaded Luke to paint the diner with her. "What?" She said.

"This sounds like a first date to me." Olivia said.

"What? No!" She said.

"Well there's definitely something going on between you." Rory said.

"Like there's something going on between you and Jess." Lorelai pointed out.

"Ok, I admit it. Jess and I...we're starting something. But now it's your turn to admit it." Rory said.

Lorelai blushed slightly. She glanced at her daughters. "Would it be weird if something was maybe going to happen?" She asked them.

"Maybe at first." Rory said. "But it's Luke. You know we love Luke."

"Yeah?"

"She's right, mom. If Luke makes you happy, then we're happy. And Rory's right, you know we love Luke." Olivia smiled. "To be honest, it was only a matter of time that this was going to happen." She said.

"What?"

"Oh come on, everyone knew Luke had a thing for you!" Olivia laughed.

Lorelai blushed. "I guess..I guess I just didn't realise I might have felt the same." She admitted. "You told me a while ago, I couldn't date Luke." She pointed out.

"That was ages ago now." Rory said. "You're ready now. I can see you're not going into it lightly."

"Just remember, if you start dating him, everyone's going to know about it." Olivia smirked slightly.

"Oh yeah, I know!" Lorelai rolled her eyes. She glanced over at Luke who gave her a small smile and she smiled back. "I think I can cope with that." She smiled softly. She glanced at Olivia. "So how about you? You seem to be hanging around with Tristan quite a bit." She said.

"We're friends." Olivia shrugged.

"Just friends?" Lorelai questioned.

"Yep." Olivia said. "I said I'd go by Lane's to pick up a cd to borrow. I'll see you later." She said getting up and rushing out quickly.

Lorelai frowned and sighed. "What do you know about Tristan?" She asked Rory.

"I don't know him that well." Rory said.

"But you go with school with him. What's he like at school? It's not like Liv's going to tell me." Lorelai said. "Come on, Rory. I'm...worried about her."

Rory hesitated. "Well...to be honest...he's a bit of a jerk." She admitted.

"That's what I was worried about." Lorelai sighed.

"Liv says he has this other side to him but...well...I haven't seen it yet. Maybe he just shows it to her but I don't know...He has this rep at the school. I'm worried she will get hurt." Rory admitted.

"Maybe I should talk to her." She said.

"No! Mom, she'll hate me if she knows I've been talking to you." Rory begged.

"I won't mention you." Lorelai promised. "I'll just express my...concern." She said.

Rory sighed. "Ok..." She said hesitantly.

* * *

"Hey mom!" Rory smiled as she and Olivia returned from school the following day.

"Hey! Good, I was just about to leave." Lorelai said.

"Where are you going?" Olivia asked.

"To Luke's. We're picking out paint colours tonight so it's going to be hours of 'yes', 'no', 'yes', 'no', 'yes', 'no', until my world-famous perseverance wears him down and he winds up in a ball on the floor crying like a girl. Want to come watch?" She grinned.

"And crash your first date, no thanks!" Olivia joked.

"This isn't the date! This is just discussing paint colours." Lorelai rolled her eyes.

"I'm house-sitting tonight anyway, remember?" Rory said. "Are you sure you don't want to come?" She asked Olivia.

"Nah, this is your and Jess' first date. I don't want to crash that either." Olivia said.

"Liv, you know you'd never crash anything we're doing. We'd have fun." Rory said.

"I know." Olivia forced a smile. "But it's ok, honest. Someone needs to watch these two anyway." She said.

"Ooh! What are those?" Lorelai asked.

"They're for school." Rory said.

"Oh, they're so cute! What are their names?" She cooed.

"Case Study Number Twelve and Thirteen." Rory smirked slightly.

"Is that hyphenated? Honey, they're adorable. They should have names."

"I'm not bonding with my midterm, thank you." Rory said.

"Well I am! I'm calling mine Stella!" Olivia grinned.

"I've got to run. I'll see you girls later." Lorelai smiled.

"Bye mom!" Olivia smiled.

"Bye mom." Rory smiled. "I better go as well. Are you sure you don't want to come?"

"It's fine. Have fun with Jess." Olivia said.

"Well...you know where we are if you change your mind." Rory said before getting up and leaving as well.

* * *

"Now, this is another way to go. Sort of a French bistro kind of look." Lorelai said showing him some paint samples.

"This isn't a French bistro." Luke said.

"Really? Huh. It's amazing the things you learn when you bother to listen." Lorelai said.

"Which you usually don't."

"Yes, but then I don't have a lot of useless information intruding in my brain."

"Thank god." Luke said dryly.

After Luke wrapped up with his last customers, set the diner up to close and managed to get rid of Taylor, Kirk and then even Andrew, the two of them were finally alone.

"You ready to talk paint?" Lorelai asked.

"No."

"Good. I've got all the choices set up and while any one of them would work, I think this combo is currently my favourite." Lorelai said.

"Huh."

"See? Imagine. This will be for the walls and this will be for the trim, the like edging around the doors and the windows." She said.

"I know what the trim is." He rolled his eyes.

"Ok. The colours are actually quite similar to what you have here now, but they're just a little richer, a little warmer. What do you think?" She asked.

"Well..."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Lorelai said before going to dim the lights. "A little ambiance."

"This is a diner. We don't do ambiance." Luke pointed out.

"Alright. One argument at a time. So what do you think?" She asked.

"Honestly?"

"Yep."

"I have no idea. You like it?" He asked.

"Yeah." She smiled.

"Ok." He said smiling slightly.

"Good." She grinned. "You know, listen, since you have to take everything off the walls to decide what stuff you're going to keep and what stuff you're to get rid of."

"Everything stays." He said.

"Ok, there's a plastic dancing pork chop that says..."

"Everything stays." He repeated.

"Ok fine, everything stays." She said.

"You know, this place hasn't been painted since my dad was alive." Luke admitted.

"No, I didn't know that." Lorelai said softly, sitting on a stool at the counter. She knew his dad was a hard subject for Luke to talk about.

"He painted it before he opened it and once more when the roof caved in one winter. I think that's probably it." He said.

"The paint lasted a long time. He got his money's worth." She said.

"Yep. He really loved this place, you know. This store was his life. Mine too, I guess. I spent every minute I wasn't in school here. I spent a lot of minutes I was supposed to be in school in here too." Luke smiled slightly.

"How come you opened a diner? Why didn't you keep it a hardware store?" She asked.

"I don't know. I didn't love the hardware business the way my dad did, and, you know, I knew how to cook so I just thought a diner would be more...fun." He said before smirking slightly.

"That's a hard word for you to say." Lorelai laughed.

"Yeah." Luke chuckled slightly. "I just always wanted to work here. Just where dad did." He admitted.

"God that's nice. To be so...I don't know...connected to your dad. That's...I would have loved that." Lorelai sighed.

"Well you've got that with Rory and Olivia." He said.

"Yeah...I guess so." Lorelai smiled softly.

Luke saw her expression change slightly. "What's on your mind?" He asked.

"Oh. Nothing. Just...something I need to talk to Olivia about." She said. "I'm not sure it will go down that well."

"Ah." He said. "Is it about that boy?"

"How did you know about Tristan?" She said surprised.

"Well...I've seen him around. And he brought her to the hospital the other day so I assumed there was something more there." Luke shrugged.

"That's what I'm worried about. According to Rory, he's probably not the best company to hold." Lorelai sighed.

"How come?" He frowned.

"Rory said he has this reputation at school plus he's kind of a jerk apparently." Lorelai said.

"Then why would Olivia hang out with him? That doesn't sound like someone she would make the time for." He said confused.

"I don't know. Apparently he has this other side to him but...I don't know. I just don't want her to get hurt." She said.

"Well if he hurts her, I'll be right next to you killing him." Luke promised.

Lorelai smiled softly. "Thanks Luke."

"You know, I still think there's a spot on the wall somewhere where my dad took an order one day when he ran out of paper." He smiled changing the subject slightly.

"Really? Where?" She asked.

"I don't know. Behind the counter maybe." He said watching her follow his directions. "Next to the door. On the right side." He smiled as she saw her sat down behind the counter so he went to join her. He smiled as he saw his dad's handwriting.

"Aw, here it is!" Lorelai smiled. "Three hammers, Phillips-head screwdrivers..." She read.

"...and three boxes of nails in assorted sizes." He smiled. "I've seen it from time to time." He said. He sighed. "Yeah, well, I guess it is time for a little spruce."

"Yeah, it is. But let's not spruce this particular spot." She smiled.

"That sounds good." He smiled softly.

"Ok." Lorelai smiled just as they heard voices outside. She held Luke down as he started to get up. "No, wait, don't get up." She said.

"But if I don't..."

"They'll go away. Trust me. Shh!" Lorelai whispered.

They watched as Taylor rattled the doorknob and knocked on the window, trying to look in. Eventually he gave up and the crowd walked away.

Luke smiled at her. "Thank you." He said.

"You're welcome." She smiled and she suddenly realised how close they were. "Hey Luke?" She said softly.

"Yeah?" He said.

"This thing between you and me...is it...I mean, was this a date? Or...?" She said blushing slightly.

"Do you want it to be a date?" He asked.

Lorelai glanced at the floor before looking back at him. She slowly leant in and kissed him. "That answer your question?"

"Absolutely." He smiled softly.

"I should go." Lorelai said reluctantly. "Olivia's home by herself. I told her I wouldn't be long."

"Ok." He said.

"So...we'll arrange a time to do the painting?" She said getting up.

"I'm looking forward to it." Luke said.

"Ah it's going to be great!" She grinned.

"Oh, I'm sure it is." He said.

"See ya."

"See ya."

* * *

"Can't you call Luke?" Olivia said desperately.

"Luke? Why?" Lorelai said.

"Because he's good in an emergency!" Olivia said. "Rory will kill me if she finds out I let her chick escape! Please mom!"

"Ok, ok, calm down! I'll call him to come and help. We'll find it ok?" She assured her.

An hour later, the living room was a mess and Lorelai and Olivia were collapsed on the couch, watching Luke search the room for Rory's chick.

"You could help, you know?" Luke said.

"What fun would that be?" Lorelai smiled sweetly.

Luke rolled her eyes and looked into the fireplace.

"So...hon..how are things going with Tristan?" Lorelai asked Olivia cautiously.

"What do you mean? We're just friends." Olivia said.

"Yeah and that's convincing." Lorelai said.

"Mom, I don't really want to talk about it. Nothing's going on between me and Tristan." She mumbled.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! God, I told you that already!" Olivia exclaimed.

"I..uh..I'm going to go check the kitchen again." Luke said leaving the room to give them some space.

"Hon, I'm allowed to worry. Especially when I've found out Tristan's got this reputation at the school and that maybe he's not the nicest person to hang around with." She said.

"You don't know him." Olivia frowned.

"You're right, I don't. Because you've not been very forthcoming about him. I'm allowed to worry." Lorelai said. "When Rory said..."

"Wait, what? You've discussed this with Rory?" Olivia exclaimed.

Lorelai cringed. "We just don't want you to get hurt, hon." She tried.

"Oh but it's ok that Rory's dating Jess right?" Olivia snapped.

"Wait, Rory and Jess are dating?" Luke asked coming back in.

"I'll explain later." Lorelai sighed. "Liv, I just don't want you to get hurt. I know Jess. I know he won't hurt Rory. I know nothing about Tristan and the things I do know, I don't particularly like." She said.

"Well you don't get to have a say in it!" Olivia exclaimed.

"I'm your mom! Of course I do!" She said.

"No you don't! You don't know anything about Tristan! I could probably get over the fact that you were worried but hearing that you've discussed this with Rory behind my back? That's low!" She snapped, getting up and grabbing her jacket.

"Where are you going?" Lorelai exclaimed.

"Out!" She snapped before slamming the front door.

"So that went well..." Lorelai sighed.

* * *

"So you think it's ok to discuss my personal life with mom, huh?" Olivia snapped as she stormed into Babette's and Morey's house.

Rory looked up from the couch where she and Jess were watching some tv in surprise. "What?" She said.

"So Tristan has a reputation at school and is apparently a jerk. Mom just made those conclusions herself huh?" Olivia said angrily.

"Liv..."

"No, don't Liv me! How could you?" Olivia exclaimed.

"Liv, I was just worried. I don't want you to get hurt. Tristan...you must know what people say about him at school." Rory said.

"Of course I do! But you don't know him! He's got this other side to him. If you paid any attention to him, you'd actually see that!" Olivia snapped.

"Liv, I'm allowed to worry." Rory sighed.

"No! No you're not! You think you can take the guy I like and then dictate who I can actually get close to? You think you have a right to tell me that? I put my feelings aside for you and now I'm trying to deal with the fact that you are with the guy I actually do like and then you start conspiring with mom about who I should or shouldn't hang out with?" She exclaimed, before realising what she had said.

"What?" Rory said shocked. "What are you talking about?"

Olivia's face paled. "Nothing." She said.

"No, you said I took the guy you like! What does that mean? I'm with Jess!" Rory frowned.

Olivia glanced at Jess. "I..."

"She didn't mean anything." Jess said. "She's probably just jealous that we've got something she doesn't. That Lorelai likes me but not Tristan. And she wants to take it out on you. Right?"

Olivia looked at him, hurt. "Right." She said quietly, blinking back tears. "I..I'm sorry. I'll go." She said turning to leave.

"No, Liv, wait!" Rory said.

"It's fine. Bye." Olivia said tremulously, before leaving.

Rory turned to Jess. "What the hell was that?" She demanded.

"What?" He said.

"Why were you so horrible to her?"

"I wasn't! She was trying to get between us which it looks like she has done!" Jess exclaimed.

"She said I took the guy she liked. Does that mean...?" She said and she saw Jess glance away. "Oh my god...it's true. She has feelings for you..."

"She..uh..she told me before she told you about how I felt." He admitted.

"And she still persuaded me to give it a go with you. She told me if I was happy, she was happy. Why didn't either of you tell me?" She demanded.

"Because it wasn't important!" He said.

"It obviously is to her!" Rory exclaimed. "I can't believe neither of you told me that!"

"Ror..." Jess sighed.

"No...I..uh..I need some space. I need some air." She said before leaving.

* * *

Rory glanced across at Olivia as they walked up the street with their mom the following day. "Liv, can I...?"

"Don't." Olivia said quietly.

Lorelai glanced at them both. "Look, I know we went about it the wrong way, hon. But can't you see we were only worried about you?" She told Olivia.

"Mom..." Rory warned, glancing at Olivia.

"No. I'm not the bad guy here. I don't know what's going on between you two but..." She said.

"No, you don't. So just leave it." Olivia snapped.

"Now hang on a minute..." Lorelai frowned just as a motorcycle came up beside them.

"Hey, nice top. Take it off." A man's voice said.

"Excuse me?" Lorelai said.

"Hey Lor..." He smiled as he took his helmet off.

"Christopher..." She said shocked.

"Dad!" Rory exclaimed rushing to him and hugging him.

"Hey kiddo!" He smiled. He glanced at Olivia. "Hey Olivia. It's great to see you." He smiled.

"You too." She said giving him a small smile.

"What are you doing here? Are you staying here? Ooh you can stay with us! Can't he, mom?" Rory exclaimed excitedly.

"Uh.." Lorelai said glancing at Olivia who didn't look too impressed.

"Don't mind me. What Rory wants, Rory gets." Olivia mumbled. "I'll see you later."

Lorelai sighed as she watched her daughter walk off. She glanced at Rory and Chris. "Sure." She said. "Stay with us."

* * *

After a disastrous Friday Night Dinner with their other set of grandparents invited, Olivia was walking around the house alone, wondering what to do. It had been so awkward and had ended up with Straub shouting at their mom and then Richard throwing him out. She walked upstairs as she saw their mom disappear up there earlier. She wandered down the hallway and heard voices in her mom's old room. She opened it slightly and saw her parents out on the balcony. She frowned as she saw them chatting and laughing together. How could they be laughing right now? She shut the door and headed back down. She saw her Grandpa's study's door closed. She didn't want to bother him so she walked through to the kitchen where she heard her Grandma talking to Rory.

"I know you've heard a lot about disappointments this evening but I want you to know that you were never one of them. Especially with me and your grandfather and especially with your mother." Emily was saying. "We are proud to call you our granddaughter."

"You know, you have another granddaughter right?" Olivia said quietly as she stood at the door.

"Liv..." Rory said surprised.

"Of course I know that!" Emily said surprised.

"But why try and find me and reassure me when you can reassure the golden girl right? Rory comes first, I get it." Olivia said.

"Olivia..." Emily said shocked.

"It's fine. I get it. I remind you of mom at this age. Rory's perfect. She's the perfect granddaughter. And daughter. I..uh..I'm going to head home." She said rushing out. She heard them calling after her but she rushed outside. She took out her cell and dialled the first person she thought of. "Tristan...are you free?" She asked.

* * *

"So...you going to tell me what happened?" Tristan asked glancing across at her in the passenger seat of his car.

"It's just been a crap night. Well, crappy few days actually." She sniffed.

"Anything I can help with?" He asked.

Olivia shook her head. "It's just hard to know that I'm the black sheep of the family, that's all." She said.

"What?" He said surprised.

She sighed. "My dad turned up out of the blue the other day. And then of course, my grandparents thought it would be a good thing to invite his parents to dinner tonight. Except they forgot the fact that they hated our mom for apparently ruining our dad's life." She said.

"What?" Tristan frowned. "It takes two to have sex. They know that right?"

"Apparently they don't believe that. They think our mom manipulated our dad. Anyway, it got really crappy and it ended with my grandpa throwing them out and ended with me wandering around the house, not really knowing what to do. I went to find my mom but she was busy laughing with my dad upstairs. Apparently she didn't care how we must have felt hearing all that stuff about us being disappointments." She mumbled. "And then I walk into the kitchen and found my grandma reassuring Rory that she wasn't a disappointment."

"That's nice." Tristan commented.

"Yeah...except she forgot that I may have needed some reassurance as well." Olivia said quietly. "I know this probably sounds selfish but I've always known that Rory was the golden girl. I remind my grandparents too much of my mom at this age and my mom...well she always just loses her mind when dad's around. I've always felt like the black sheep and tonight...well...I guess it just came to a head. I'm sorry. You probably think I'm being so selfish..." She said.

"No I don't think that." He said glancing at her. "For what it's worth, I don't think you could ever be a disappointment to anyone." He said.

Olivia smiled tremulously at him. "Thanks." She said quietly.

Tristan glanced at her before making a decision and turning the car around.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"I'm taking you back to Stars Hollow." He said.

"What, no! I don't want to go home yet." She said.

"You need believing that you, Olivia Gilmore, are not a disappointment." Tristan said driving into Stars Hollow and parking outside the diner. "No, Tristan, we can't go in there..."

"Why not?" He asked. "You've known that Jess guy for years right? Along with his uncle. They'll get you to see sense."

"I can't go in there." Olivia said.

"Why not?"

"Jess and I...We got into a fight. It may have come out that I..uh..had feelings for him. Rory knows everything and we're barely talking..." Olivia said awkwardly. "He won't want to see me. I've messed up him and Rory now. See, that's what I do. I mess everything up! You should steer well clear of me." She said.

"Ok, we're going in." Tristan said taking hold of her hand and leading her inside. He knocked on the door.

"Tristan, please..." Olivia begged but she was slightly surprised to see Luke and Jess still downstairs in the diner.

"Olivia?" Luke said surprised. "Where's your mom?"

"Uh...at my grandparents' house." She said. She glanced round the diner and her eyes widened as she saw the tables and chairs pushed to one side. "Oh my god, mom was meant to paint the diner with you tonight!" She exclaimed.

"She forgot." Luke guessed.

Olivia cringed. "It's been a...uh...bad night." She said not being able to stop thinking about her mom and dad on that balcony. She just hoped her mom would remember about Luke at least before doing something stupid.

"That's why I brought her here. I figured you could cheer her up. She's got this stupid notion in her head that she's a disappointment to everyone. I wanted to show her that wasn't true. You both have known her for a long time and I thought you could make her see sense." Tristan said.

Luke glanced at Tristan in surprise and then looked at Olivia. "Of course you're not a disappointment. Why would think that?" He said.

Olivia just shrugged. She glanced at Jess who hadn't said anything. "I shouldn't have come here. I..uh..I'm sorry..." She said turning round.

Tristan glanced at Jess. "Look, mate, I know you two have had some sort of a disagreement but can't you put that aside for now?" He said.

"What's it to you?" Jess grumbled.

"Look, I've just had to listen to her put herself down the whole journey here. She feels like noone cares about her. I thought at least you could reassure her. But hey, if you can't put an argument aside for this, then maybe you're not really her friend after all." He shrugged.

"Wait..." Jess sighed.

Olivia turned round. "Jess, I..." She said tremulously.

Jess sighed. "Come here." He said softly, walking forward and bringing her into a hug. "You're not a disappointment. You could never be a disappointment. Who else would I talk to about music and how much The Offspring suck?" He said.

Olivia smiled slightly and wiped some tears away. "I...I didn't mean to ruin things between you and Rory. It...I was angry and it just came out. I am really sorry."

"Forget it." Jess said. "I said some stuff I regret too so let's call it even." He said.

"You mean it?" Olivia asked quietly.

"Hey, you're one of the best people in the world ok? I feel so lucky to call you a friend." Jess said sincerely. "Don't ever doubt that ok?"

"And you know your mom and grandparents love you." Luke said softly.

"And Rory." Jess added. "Life would definitely be more dull without you in it."

Olivia smiled tremulously and she gave Jess another hug. "Thank you." She said softly.

"Fancy helping us paint?" Jess asked.

"What?" She said.

"Well, everything's set already. I thought I might as well help. And seeing as you're here now." Jess said.

"You're going to paint?" Olivia smiled slightly.

"Why don't you stay and see it for yourself?" Jess smirked.

Olivia glanced at Luke. "I'm really sorry my mom forgot. She...had a rough night too. I'm sure she'll feel awful when she realises..." She said quietly.

"It's fine." Luke assured her. "You're here. One Gilmore is enough." He smiled.

"So you'll help?" Jess asked.

"Sure." She nodded, feeling a bit better.

"I'll leave you to it." Tristan smiled heading for the door.

"No, wait! Why don't you stay and help as well?" Olivia suggested. She smiled at him and went over and hugged him. "Thank you for this." She said softly.

"Only trying to help." He smiled.

She glanced at Luke and Jess. "Is it ok if Tristan stays to help?" She asked them.

Luke glanced at Tristan and then back at Olivia. "Sure." He nodded.

"Yeah why not? The more people we have helping, the quicker we can get this done." Jess said.

"Your devotion is touching." Luke said dryly. "Here." He said handing them rollers.

Olivia smiled as she started rolling her roller in the paint. She glanced at Jess before smirking slightly and flicking her roller over to him spraying him with some paint.

"Hey!" He exclaimed.

"You said your life would be dull without me. I'm just proving your point." She grinned.

"Oh ok. That's how we're playing it, huh?" Jess smirked, picking up the paint with a glint in his eye.

"Don't you dare!" Olivia laughed running away from him as Jess threw some paint over her. "Jess!" She exclaimed.

"Oh geez..." Luke said as he could see what was about to happen.

"Save me!" Olivia exclaimed hiding behind Tristan.

"You really think I'm going to protect you?" Tristan smirked.

"I can't believe you two are already ganging up on me!" Olivia exclaimed in mock astonishment.

"Hey, us guys have to stick together right?" Tristan smirked at Jess.

"Right." Jess chuckled picking up some more paint.

Luke couldn't help but chuckle slightly as he saw Olivia squeal and then try to get away only to be caught by Tristan and swung round while Jess poured some more paint over her.

"I hate you all!" Olivia exclaimed.

"Nah you don't." Jess smirked. "You love us really."

Olivia smirked slightly. "You are both so going down!" She said grabbing some paint.

 **So I hope you liked it! :) Please keep the reviews coming as I love to read what you all think! I really do appreciate all your support so thank you again! :)**


	10. Chapter 10

**Thank you for all your support so far! I really do appreciate it! :) Here's the next chapter!**

Chapter 10

"Ok so it may have taken longer than you'd planned but I feel like it looks good..." Olivia said looking round the diner at the end product.

"It looks good." Luke nodded. "You should get home. Your mom will be worried." He said.

Olivia sighed. "Yeah ok." She said. She glanced at him. "Will you two be ok? I..uh..I'm sure mom didn't mean to forget. It's just been a..."

"Rough night." Luke finished for her. "Don't worry about it." He said.

"Are you sure?" Olivia said. "I know this was sort of meant to be your...uh...first date..." She said hesitantly.

Luke glanced at her. "Your mom told you about it huh?" He asked.

"Do you really think mom could keep something like this a secret?" Olivia smiled slightly.

Luke smirked slightly. "I guess not." He said. He glanced at her. "Are you and Rory...?"

"Hey, you treat our mom well and we're happy." She joked.

"Got it." He nodded.

"Luke, we love you. This was really only a matter of time." Olivia smiled softly.

"Thanks." He said ducking his head.

"Hear hear." Jess said dryly.

Olivia smiled and turned to him. "Thanks...for tonight. It was fun." She said.

"Yeah it was." Jess nodded.

"Jess, I'm sorry about..." Olivia started.

"Don't worry about it." Jess interrupted her.

"I should never have blurted it out like that. Will you and Rory...?" She said cautiously.

"Don't worry about it." He repeated. He gave her a small smile. "I owe you an apology. For being a jerk to you."

"It's ok." Olivia smiled softly. She sighed. "I just want things to go back to normal but I guess it can't completely..."

"I guess not." Jess sighed. "But I don't want to lose you. We..uh..we need to find a way to..."

"We will." She said. "I know how you feel and I respect that. It's just me who has to work through some things."

Jess nodded. "I am sorry..."

"You have nothing to be sorry for." Olivia assured him. She sighed and went forward to hug him. "Friends?" She asked.

"Always." He said.

Olivia smiled. "Thanks Jess." She said softly. "I better go." She said turning to Tristan.

"I'll walk you home." Tristan smiled.

"Ok." She said quietly, before giving Luke and Jess a small smile and a wave before leaving with Tristan.

* * *

Rory walked out of her bedroom and into the kitchen where her mom and dad were. "Liv's on her way home." She told them.

"Thank god! Where was she? Is she ok?" Lorelai asked.

"She said she helped Luke and Jess paint the diner." Rory said.

"Oh crap, the diner! Luke and I were going to paint it tonight!" She exclaimed. "How did I forget that?"

"It's been a weird evening. I'm sure he'll understand." Rory said quietly.

"God, I hope so. Tonight was meant to be..." She started saying but stopped when she realised Chris was watching them.

"Who's Luke?" He asked.

"He owns the diner in town." Rory said.

"Ah right! The one who provides the legendary coffee." Chris chuckled. "Why were you going to help him paint the diner though? Couldn't he do that himself? Or get some decorators in or something?" He said confused.

"Because he hates that sort of stuff. The only reason he agreed to do it was because I promised I would help him. God, I'm such a jerk! It was all my idea and now I've let him down." Lorelai groaned.

"I'm sure he'll live. Just tell him I kept you busy." Chris chuckled.

"Yeah I don't think that will help the matter seeing as tonight was meant to be my first date with him." Lorelai said.

"Date?" Chris said shocked. "You...didn't say you were seeing anyone..."

"Should I have?" Lorelai frowned. "I don't even know your current number, Chris. Did you even remember it was your daughters' sixteenth birthdays the other week?" She said, gesturing to Rory who took that as a cue to leave. "Yeah I thought not." She said as she saw the guilty look on Chris' face.

"I...was busy." He tried.

"Too busy to spare a few minutes to call them?" Lorelai snapped. "God Chris, you make your parents think they're right. You make it seem like you really don't care about Rory or Liv at all, like I really did ruin your life."

"That's not fair..." Chris said.

"Isn't it? Why are you really here?" She said.

"I wanted to see my girls!"

"We haven't been your girls for a very long time!" Lorelai said. "I am allowed to date who I like. You have no say in that."

"I just thought..." He said.

"What, that I would be waiting for you? Chris, I have my own life. A really good life. And tonight I let down someone who's been a constant in that life so I'm sorry if I'm being rude but my priority is making it up to him, not explaining it to you." She said.

"Come on Lor, a diner owner? Really? I never thought you'd settle for someone like that." Chris said.

* * *

"Thanks for saving me tonight." Olivia smiled at Tristan as they walked up to the Crap Shack.

"You don't need to thank me." He said.

"I just didn't really know who to ring." She sighed. "You were the first person to come to mind." She said. She glanced at him. "Tristan, I..."

"It's ok." Tristan said.

"What?" She said.

"This...us two...it's too complicated for you. I get it. You're not over how you feel about Jess yet." He said.

Olivia sighed. "I really do like you. And I really do enjoy spending time with you. I just..."

"I know." He smiled softly. "You need to work through some things. I get it."

"I just don't want to lead you on. It's not fair on you." Olivia said quietly, glancing at him. "You deserve better than that."

"I never thought you were just leading me on, so don't worry." Tristan assured her. "You can't help how you feel. It's ok."

"This doesn't mean we still can't be friends right?" She said.

Tristan smirked. "Who would annoy you at school otherwise?"

Olivia laughed. "Noone springs to mind."

"There you go then." He said.

Olivia leant forward and hugged him. "Thanks again for tonight."

"No problem." He smiled. "I'll see you at school." He said giving her a mock salute before walking off.

"See you at school." Olivia smiled softly before heading inside. She found Rory on the couch in the living room and she heard raised voices in the kitchen. "Hey..." She said quietly.

"Oh..hey..." Rory said.

"What's going on?" She asked sitting down next to her.

"Dad proposed to mom." Rory said.

"What?" Olivia said, her eyes widening.

"Mom mentioned that today was meant to be her first date with Luke and dad got all jealous and desperate." Rory shrugged. "You know what it's like."

"Don't I just..." Olivia sighed. "What did mom say?"

"No, obviously." Rory said. "She told him that he doesn't have a say in her life anymore and that she can date who she likes, when she likes."

"Good for mom!" Olivia smiled slightly.

Rory glanced at her and smiled slightly. "I thought so too." She said. "Was Luke mad that mom forgot?" She asked hesitantly.

"I don't know." She said honestly. "He didn't seem mad. But...I think he was a little hurt."

"Poor Luke." Rory sighed. "At least he had you and Jess helping him out."

"And Tristan."

"Tristan?" Rory said surprised.

"Yeah, I..uh..kind of called him after I left Grandma and Grandpa's. I needed a ride and he was the first person I thought of. I was..uh..sort of feeling sorry for myself." She admitted.

"Yeah...I got that feeling before you left." Rory said hesitantly. "You know Grandma found me in the kitchen. She was looking for both of us, not just me..."

"It's fine." Olivia sighed. "I guess everything just got on top of me and I took it out on everyone. It's been a weird week..." She said glancing at her sister.

"Yeah..." Rory said quietly.

Olivia sighed. "Look...this thing with Jess...I know it's weird and complicated. But Jess likes you, Rory. He really likes you. Don't just give up your chance at real happiness because of me. You deserve happiness, Ror."

"So do you." Rory said quietly. "I don't want things to be awkward between us. If I'm with Jess..."

"I'll learn to deal with it." Olivia said. "But don't be mad at Jess. It's not his fault how I feel. Just...don't give him up for me. I don't want that."

"You really mean that?" She asked biting her lip.

Olivia smiled softly at her. "I really do. You and Jess have a real chance of happiness. Take it." She said.

"Liv, you're back!" Lorelai said appearing from the kitchen with Chris following behind her.

"Yeah..I..uh..I'm sorry about just leaving like that. I just needed to get out. Get some air." Olivia said.

"I'm just glad you're ok. But please...next time, just let me know where you are and that you're ok." Lorelai said.

"Sorry." Olivia said.

"I'm going to get going." Chris said.

"Chris..." Lorelai sighed.

"It's fine. I guess I'll see you around." He said. He glanced at his daughters. "I know you girls heard a lot tonight but I want you to know I never once regretted anything. Least of all, you two. I know...well, I know I'm probably not the best dad in the world but...I do love you both. I just wanted you to know that."

"That goes for me too." Lorelai said softly. "No regrets and definitely no disappointments from our view."

"Now..uh..do I get a hug before I go?" Chris said.

Rory and Olivia glanced at each other before getting up and giving their dad a hug.

"I'll call you." He promised.

"Sure." Olivia said not totally believing him.

Chris glanced at Lorelai. "Bye Lor..." He said softly.

"Bye Chris." She sighed, watching him leave.

Olivia glanced at her mom. "So..uh..nothing happened between you two then?" She asked.

"What? No! Definitely not!" Lorelai said.

"You just seem happy upstairs at Grandma and Grandpa's. You were chatting and laughing." Olivia said quietly.

Lorelai sighed. "We were talking about how awkward the night had been. There had been lots of those for us when we were younger." She said. She sighed. "Your dad...well, he wanted things to happen." She admitted. "But I told him no."

"So you did remember Luke then..." She said quietly.

"Of course I remembered Luke. I just..."

"Forgot about your date." Olivia nodded.

"Yeah." She admitted. "I feel awful."

"Well...he had me, Jess and Tristan helping." Olivia said. "He...didn't seem mad or anything. Just...understanding."

"Tristan?" She said surprised.

"Yeah. Tristan." Olivia said. "I know you hate him but he's my friend. I'm not just going to dump him. He really helped me tonight."

Lorelai sighed. "No I'm sorry. I went about things the wrong way. Don't blame your sister. She hated talking about it with me." She said.

Olivia glanced at Rory. "I don't." She sighed.

"Look, if Tristan means so much to you and if you like him, then...well, I'd like to meet him. I'd like to get to know him. To see that side of him that you only seem to see." Lorelai said.

"Really?" Olivia said surprised.

"I don't want to fight, hon. I hate fighting with you."

"Me too." She sighed. "But...it's ok. Tristan and I...well, we've decided not to take things further." She admitted.

"Wait, what?" Rory said surprised.

"I..uh..need to work through some stuff of my own. It wouldn't be fair on him." Olivia said, glancing at Rory who understood what her sister was talking about.

"Well...I'm sorry." Lorelai said.

"No you're not." Olivia said smirking slightly.

"I am!"

"Alright, sure." Olivia smiled.

Lorelai laughed slightly. "Ok...maybe I am a bit relieved but...I want you to be happy, Liv. That's all I ever wanted. For both of you."

"I know." Olivia assured her.

"So...movie night to end the feud?" Rory suggested.

"Definitely!" Olivia grinned.

"I am so in!" Lorelai laughed.

* * *

Lorelai took a deep breath before entering the diner the following morning. She walked up to the counter where Luke was stood. "Hi..." She said nervously.

"Hey..." Luke said glancing up at her.

"Luke, I'm so sorry about yesterday. I feel awful." She said.

"It's fine." He said.

"It's not. I made you a promise and I let you down. I never want to let you down. Especially...well, especially since last night was meant to mean a lot to me." She sighed.

Luke glanced at her. "It was?" He asked.

"Oh Luke, of course!" Lorelai said softly. "I was so looking forward to it and then things...well, things weren't the best at dinner..."

"Yeah...Olivia kind of implied that. What happened?" He asked cautiously.

"Chris' parents." She sighed. "My parents invited them to the dinner and let's just say they've never exactly been the biggest fan of me, especially when I apparently ruined Chris' life by getting pregnant."

"It takes two to make a baby. They know that, right?" Luke frowned.

"Of course they do. But apparently I was the bad influence. Chris was destined for amazing things until I ruined it for him." She said dryly. "They said all this infront of Rory and Liv as well."

"They heard that?" Luke said shocked. "Ok yesterday makes so much more sense now..."

"What do you mean?" She said confused.

"Tristan said something about Olivia saying she was a let down to everyone and how she was putting herself down. He figured since Jess and I had known her for years, we could talk some sense into her." Luke told her. "Of course I told her she was talking nonsense and that she wasn't a let down and that you loved her so much. And we...well, Jess and I do as well."

Lorelai smiled tremulously. "Thank you, Luke."

"Why are you crying?" Luke said. "I didn't mean to upset you..."

"No I just..." She sighed. "I screwed up so badly last night and you're still...you. I am so lucky to have you in my life."

Luke ducked his head slightly. "Well...I don't know about that but...thanks." He said gruffly.

"I really am sorry. I know we can't have a painting date anymore but I really hope you want to still do something..." She said nervously.

"Hey! Long time, no speak!" A voice said as the diner door opened.

Luke looked up and Lorelai could see the surprise in his face. She turned to see a man about Luke's age with a big grin on his face. "Steve...what...what are you doing here?" Luke said.

"I've come to see you, of course! Thought I'd get a better welcome than that though!" He joked, with a twinkle in his eye.

Lorelai watched, intrigued, as a big smile appeared on Luke's face and he went round and brought Steve into a hug.

"Are Ben and Amy here?" He asked.

"Yeah, they spotted the book store though and had to take a look." Steve said.

"Of course!" Luke chuckled. "It's so good to see you. It's been what..."

"7 years." Steve smiled wistfully.

"7 years? Yeah..wow..that's gone by so fast." Luke said.

"Tell me about it." Steve said.

"Come. Come sit. Oh, Steve, this is Lorelai." Luke said finally introducing them. "Lorelai, this is my old friend, Steve." He said.

"Less with the old! You're the same age, mate." Steve joked. "So you're the famous Lorelai, huh?" He grinned.

"Don't be a jerk, Steve." Luke said, rolling his eyes.

"I'm famous?" Lorelai asked looking between them, still trying to work out the connection between them.

"Oh yeah! Every phone call every week, there is always a new Lorelai story." Steve grinned.

Luke blushed slightly. "There's never much to talk about." He said.

"Sure." Steve smirked. "I've wanted to meet you since I realised this guy is so totally head over heels for you."

"You're an ass." Luke said blushing more. "I knew there was a reason I've kept you at arm's length." He smirked but Lorelai could see through his teasing tone.

"So have you asked her out yet?" Steve grinned.

"Seriously?" Luke said, shaking his head.

"Oh come on, I need to live this part of life through you now." He said.

Lorelai saw Luke's expression soften a lot when Steve had said that and she wondered what that was about. "Actually, yesterday was meant to be our first date." Lorelai said deciding to help Luke out a bit. "But I screwed it up so I'm hoping Luke will give me another chance..." She smiled glancing at him "What do you say?"

Luke smiled slightly. "I say I'm in if you're really sure about it." He said softly.

"I am." She smiled softly.

"Then...it's a date." Luke said.

Lorelai smiled. "Thanks." She said softly, feeling grateful that Luke had obviously forgiven her.

"Luke!" Two voices exclaimed suddenly.

Lorelai watched as two kids about Olivia and Rory's age, one boy and one girl, race behind the counter to Luke. She smiled as Luke gave them a one armed hug and could see the warmth in his interaction with them.

"Ben, Amy, it's good to see you." Luke said

"Has dad been driving you crazy already?" Amy grinned.

"You could say that." Luke chuckled.

"Typical dad." Ben smirked.

"How are you guys doing?" Luke smiled at them.

"We're doing ok." Amy nodded.

"Yeah, it's cool in New York." Ben nodded.

"Well, Jess should be back soon. I know he'll be happy to see you guys." Luke said.

"How about we go and leave you to work and then we can catch up later?" Steve suggested.

"Hey, why don't you all come to dinner at mine this evening?" Lorelai suggested. "You can meet my daughters as well. I think they're about your age." She smiled at Ben and Amy. "How old are you?"

"17." Ben said.

"16." Amy said.

"Oh cool. My daughters are 16 as well." Lorelai smiled. "I'm sure they'd love to meet you."

"That's really nice of you." Steve smiled. "Are you sure we wouldn't be putting you out?"

"Seeing as I will probably get Luke to cook the food, not at all." Lorelai grinned.

Steve laughed. "Ok then. So what, should we say about 7?"

"Sounds great." Lorelai smiled.

"Great. We'll see you later then." Steve said. He smiled at Luke. "It really is great to see you." He said sincerely.

"You too." Luke smiled.

"We'll catch up later?"

"Definitely." He nodded, smiling as he watched them leave.

"So how do you two know each other then?" Lorelai asked interested.

"We met at school." Luke said.

"Wow, so you really do go way back then." Lorelai said.

"Yeah." He said.

"And those are his kids?" She asked.

"Yeah. He's a great dad. He always was but he's really had to be." He said.

"What do you mean?" Lorelai asked.

Luke sighed. "Steve's wife...uh...He lost her 7 years ago. It really shook him hard."

"Oh my god! Poor Steve!" Lorelai's eyes widened. "And those kids..."

"Ben was 10, Amy was 9." Luke sighed. "She died in a car accident. It was so sudden and just...awful." He said. "Steve couldn't bear to be around here anymore so he left to be closer to some of his family in New York. I actually went to stay with them for a bit. You know, help Steve with the kids and stuff. He was so devastated and broken but he needed to be strong for those kids. He's done so much for them. He adores them and they adore him. He's an amazing dad." Luke said.

"Wow..." Lorelai said softly. "He sounds like a pretty amazing person."

"He is." Luke said. "He really helped out when my dad passed away. I wanted to repay the favour. I don't think I could have coped if it hadn't been for him. So whenever he needs me, I'm there."

"That's sweet." Lorelai smiled. "So you haven't seen them for 7 years?"

"I've been to visit a few times but he's never been back here. I never thought he would." He admitted.

"They obviously wanted to see you." She smiled softly.

"It's good to see them." Luke smiled. "Thanks...for inviting them to dinner. It means a lot to me."

"Of course! I want to know your friends. And Ben and Amy seem great." She said.

"They really are. Considering what they've been through, they're great kids. They were devastated obviously when they lost their mom. But they're strong kids. I think they'll get on great with Olivia and Rory." Luke smiled. "Maybe..uh..maybe if they do, we could go visit them in New York sometime?"

"That sounds really nice." Lorelai smiled. "I should get going. But see you tonight?"

"See you tonight." He said.

* * *

"Let me help you with that." Steve smiled as he joined Lorelai by the sink as she washed up the dishes from the meal.

"Oh thanks." She smiled. "I thought since Luke cooked it, the least I can do is wash up." She joked.

Steve laughed. "I know the kids were keen to catch up with him." He smiled as he heard Luke laughing in the other room along with Ben and Amy.

Lorelai smiled. "He seems to think a lot of them." She said. "And of you." She said glancing at him.

"We've known each other a long time. We've...well, we've been there for each other through a lot of stuff..." He said.

Lorelai glanced at him. "Luke told me about your wife. I'm so sorry. I can't even begin to imagine what you all must have had to go through." She said quietly.

Steve smiled sadly at her. "Thanks, Lorelai." He said. He sighed. "It's been 7 years but I still think about her everyday. She was amazing. And she was an amazing mother. Ben and Amy adored her."

"It seems like they adore you as well." She smiled softly at him.

"I've done my best." Steve sighed. "I've had to. But it's been hard." He admitted. "I...well...let's just say things got really bad for me. I kind of got into a funk and...well, I'm not proud of it but I turned to drink. Luke was really there for me through it all. He didn't judge me. He just told me that I needed to stay strong. For Ben and Amy's sakes. He paid for me to get help with the drinking whilst he stayed and looked after the kids. He was...a real friend. I will never forget what he did for me." He said quietly, his voice cracking slightly. "He really saved me."

"Wow..." Lorelai said quietly.

"He's a good one. Be sure to hold onto him." Steve smiled softly at her.

"I intend to." She smiled.

"He really likes you. I can tell. There's not been one phone call that he hasn't mentioned you in." Steve said. "I knew you must be special."

Lorelai blushed slightly. "Well I don't know about that but...Luke means a lot to me. He's been there for me and for my daughters as well. He had no obligation to but he was." She smiled softly.

"That's who Luke is." Steve smiled.

"Yeah. It is." Lorelai said softly.

"Everything ok in here?" Luke asked as he reappeared in the kitchen.

"Everything's good. How are the kids?" Lorelai smiled.

"Rory's showing Amy her book collection with Jess and Olivia and Ben are chatting about music." Luke said.

"Ben could talk all day about music." Steve chuckled.

"So could Liv!" Lorelai laughed.

"Well I thought it might be nice to catch up with you." Luke smiled at Steve. "Want to go outside for a bit?"

"You mind?" Steve asked Lorelai.

"You go." Lorelai smiled at them.

"You sure you're ok finishing the washing up?" Luke asked.

"Yep. I've nearly finished anyway. Go. I'm good." She said.

"Ok." Luke smiled. "Thanks."

* * *

"You're kidding? You have a whole bookshelf worth of records?" Olivia exclaimed.

"Yup! I could spend every day just listening to them." Ben grinned.

"I'm still saving up to buy a record player." Olivia sighed.

"Well...if you guys do come and visit, you're welcome to borrow it." He said.

"Seriously?" She said excitedly.

"Sure. I'm just glad to find someone who is as crazy about music as I am. I drive Amy crazy. She's more into books." Ben chuckled.

"So's my sister." Olivia laughed. "Hey, you should meet our friend Lane. She's a crazy music nerd like us." She grinned.

Ben laughed. "Well us music nerds do have to stick together right?" He grinned.

Olivia smiled at him. "Right." She said.

Ben smiled at him. "I'm glad Luke has you guys. He's helped our family so much. He deserves to have some happiness."

"Luke's great." Olivia smiled. "He's really helped us out a lot. He's just...been there for us. Like a constant in our life, you know?"

"Sounds like Luke." Ben said.

Olivia glanced at him. "I'm really sorry about your mom..." She said quietly.

Ben sobered for a moment. "Thanks." He said gruffly.

"Our mom...she's amazing. She's done everything for us. Our dad...well, he hasn't been around much. But she's never made us feel like we weren't wanted or weren't loved. I just...I can't imagine how I would cope if anything happened to her..." She said quietly. She glanced at him. "I can't even begin to imagine what you and Amy have had to go through. Sorry...I'm just rambling. I don't really know what to say." She admitted sheepishly.

"It's ok." He smiled softly at her. "We miss her a lot. Dad's been great though. He..uh..he went through some stuff but he got through it with the help of Luke. And from then on, he's done everything for me and Amy. I guess we're a lot like you, Rory and your mom." He said. "I know he finds it hard to talk about mom but he does encourage us to. I try not to so much though because I know it kills him." He sighed.

"Well...if you do ever need someone to talk to...I..uh..I'm always here. I've been told I'm a good listener." She said.

Ben smiled. "Thank you." He said.

"Ben, you have got to see the amount of books Rory has! They could probably match your record collection!" Amy grinned as she, Jess and Rory came back in.

"I'm cool." Ben smirked. "I've found my fellow music nerd." He said grinning at Olivia.

Olivia laughed. "Lane's got competition." She grinned at Rory.

"I'm sure she'd love to know that." Rory laughed. "So are you guys hungry? Should we grab some snacks and put a movie on or something?" Rory suggested.

"Sounds good!" Olivia nodded. "Get the popcorn and the red vines!" She told Rory. "Oh and the mallomars! Oooh and the marshmallows!" She grinned.

"How are you two still hungry? We literally just ate!" Ben said shocked.

"Oh, you'll come to learn to never question the Gilmores' appetites." Jess smirked.

"I'll come and help you." Amy laughed, following Rory.

"So any preference of what movie to watch?" Olivia grinned at Ben.

 **So I was really nervous about this chapter but I hope you like the new additions! :) Please keep the reviews coming as I would love to know what you all think. :) Thank you again so much for all your support. It really does mean so much to me! :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Thank you so much for all your support! Here's the next chapter. Sorry it's a bit shorter than recent ones but the next one will be longer, I promise! :)**

Chapter 11

"So how are you holding up?" Luke asked as he sat on the back porch with Steve.

"I'm doing ok." Steve nodded.

"Yeah?" Luke said. "You seem better. You seem good. Well...as good as you can be obviously." He said.

"I am." Steve said. He sighed. "It's been hard. You know that better than anyone. You were there when I was at my worst. But...I am getting there. Haven't touched a drop of drink for 6 years."

"That's great." Luke smiled. "I'm proud of you."

Steve smiled. "It still hurts...Everyday I wake up and I forget just for split second that Laura's still alive and that we're so happy. And then I remember..." He sighed.

"I've been through that." Luke sighed.

"But I'm getting there." Steve told him. "Ben and Amy have been great. They've really kept me going."

"They're great kids." Luke smiled.

"It looks like they're hitting it off with Lorelai's daughters." Steve smiled as he glanced through the window and saw them all chatting and laughing together.

"Yeah, Olivia and Rory are great. I'm glad they're getting on." Luke said.

"Because it will make us hanging out even easier especially since you and Lorelai are a thing?" He smirked slightly.

Luke ducked his head slightly. "You're a jerk." He said but smiled slightly.

"She seems great." He smiled. "Really great. And she thinks a lot of you as well."

"Yeah?" Luke said glancing at him.

"From the way she was talking about you, I think that's a safe bet." Steve smiled. "I'm happy for you, mate. You deserve this. And Lorelai really does seem great."

"Thanks." He smiled softly.

"Hey, you know, I'm planning on taking Ben and Amy to the cabin at the weekend. You should come along with Jess." He said.

"Really?" Luke said.

"We..uh..we haven't been there since the accident. But I want Ben and Amy to think of the happy memories we had there. I don't want them to dread going. But...you coming along would be nice. A bit of moral support you know." Steve said. "Bring Lorelai as well and her daughters. We could all just hang out."

Luke thought for a moment. "Ok. I'll mention it to Lorelai."

"Great." Steve smiled.

* * *

Olivia glanced across at Rory and Jess who were sitting close to each other and she could see the smiles between them. She smiled slightly to herself. She was glad they were able to sort things out. She sighed but focused her attention back onto the tv.

"Red vine for your thoughts?" Ben whispered in her ear.

Olivia smiled slightly as she saw Ben holding out a red vine to her next to her. "I'm just thinking it was nice to hang out with you guys tonight." She whispered taking the red vine.

"Well that wasn't worth it. I thought I'd get some juicy gossip at least." He grinned.

"Sorry to disappoint you. But this was definitely worth it." She grinned eating the red vine.

Ben chuckled. "I guess it was nice to hang out with you all as well." He said.

"Oh yeah? So it was worth it then." Olivia teased, her eyes twinkling.

"Maybe." Ben smirked. "It's nice to hang out with people our own age." He admitted.

"I'm sure there's plenty of people your age back in New York." Olivia laughed.

"Oh there are." Amy joined in the conversation. "But...they all know what happened to us. And..uh..how dad struggled to cope for a while. So they sort of treat us differently to everyone else at school." She shrugged.

"That's awful." Olivia said shocked. "I'm so sorry."

"It's New York." Ben said. "People act differently there." He sighed.

"We get why dad wanted to move there. We know he had to get away from here. We get that. And we do have family in New York. It's just...I kind of miss it here. We were happy here. Well, before everything happened..." Amy said quietly. "Dad was happy here, we loved school, we had great friends, Luke's here...It's just...I kind of miss it." She admitted.

"Me too." Ben said putting his arm round his sister.

"Why don't you talk to your dad about it?" Rory asked as she and Jess joined the conversation.

"It's not fair on him." Amy said. "He's been doing so much better. If we came back here, I don't know what would happen. I don't know if he'd be able to cope." She said. "I...We lost mom already. I can't lose dad as well."

"Hey, that's not going to happen." Ben reassured her.

"How do you know though? It got so bad! I know it did. Luke tried to hide what was really happening but we were 10 and 9. I was old enough to understand what was happening. He could have killed himself." Amy said tremulously.

"But he didn't." Jess said. "He got better. For you guys. I wish my mom would want to get better for me." He said.

"Jess..." Rory said.

"I know. I know this probably makes me sound selfish or ungrateful or something. What you guys went through...losing your mom...it was awful. And here I am wishing my mom wasn't here." He said, sighing. "I just...Your mom was amazing. She loved you so much. I wish I had that." He said.

"We get it." Amy assured him, knowing the history of Jess' mom.

"My mom picked the drink and drugs over me. Your mom might not be around anymore but your dad...yeah, he went through some stuff...but he chose you. He wanted to get better because of you two. He did pick you over the drink." Jess said. "I'm sure he would want to know if you're not enjoying your life in New York. He's better now. I'm sure it would be ok."

Amy glanced at Ben. "I don't know..."

"He's right..." A voice said from the doorway.

They all turned to see Steve and Luke standing there.

"Dad..." Amy said.

"Why didn't you tell me you were miserable?" Steve said softly.

"We...didn't want to add to your stress." Amy said.

Steve sighed. "You two could never do that."

"Hey, you guys want to help me with something in the kitchen?" Luke said to Jess, Rory and Olivia.

They nodded and followed him, knowing that he wanted to give Steve, Amy and Ben some space.

"Hey, what's going on?" Lorelai asked.

"Just giving them some space. I think they need to talk about a few things." Luke said.

"Ah." She nodded.

"Oh, by the way, Steve has invited us to his cabin this weekend. If you're interested?" He said.

"A cabin?" Lorelai asked.

"Yeah. We used to go there a lot when we were younger. It's his family's cabin. You up for it? We can go swimming and caneoing and stuff. It could be fun." Luke said. "Plus...well I think Steve needs a bit of moral support. It's the first time they're going back since...well since Laura's accident." He said.

"Oh poor Steve." Lorelai said sympathetically.

"So are you up for it?" He asked.

"Can we mom?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah, it'll be nice to have a Paris free weekend for once." Rory joked.

"I'm up for it." Jess said.

"Well...I'd have to check with work but I'm sure they'll be ok." Lorelai said.

"Yeah?" Luke smiled.

"Yeah. It'll be nice to get away from a bit." Lorelai smiled. "Especially with you." She said softly.

"Ok we're out." Olivia said disappearing into her and Rory's bedroom.

"Yep bye." Rory said as she and Jess followed Olivia.

"I guess we'll have to get used to them being all sappy now." Olivia joked.

"I guess so." Rory smirked.

"It will be nice to get away though. Spend some time together." Jess said.

"Like we don't do that already?" Olivia teased.

"You know what I mean. I mean, properly spend time together. Relaxing and stuff." He said glancing at Rory and smiling slightly.

Olivia saw the blush on her sister's face. "Oh that kind of spending time together." She teased them. She saw them looking at her curiously. "I'm glad you guys worked things out." She said sincerely.

"You are?" Rory asked.

"Of course." Olivia said. "You're happy. I can tell. You deserve it. Both of you." She told them.

"Nothing changes ok? Between the three of us. Nothing changes." Jess said.

Olivia smiled. "I know that." She said softly.

"And you'll be ok with us...?" Jess said hesitantly.

"You mean have my feelings miraculously disappeared?" She said but with a teasing smile. "No." She said. "But I'm starting to deal with them better. Jess, it's cool. You and Rory are a better fit than me and you would ever be. I'm happy for you. Honestly."

"If you're sure." He said.

"Hey, guess what." Ben said appearing at the door.

"What?" Olivia said.

"We might be moving back here." Amy grinned.

"What? Seriously?" Olivia said.

"Well, dad said we'll talk about it more at the weekend but...yeah, it's looking likely." He smiled.

"That's great!" Olivia smiled.

"I think so too." Ben smiled. "Hey, this means you can borrow my record player anytime you want now." He said.

"That is great!" She grinned.

* * *

"Ah so you're the music nerd Olivia won't stop going on about." Lane joked.

"You talk about me a lot huh?" Ben smirked at Olivia.

"No. Lane likes to exaggerate." Olivia said, smiling slightly.

"Oh yeah?" He said.

"Yep." She nodded.

"Ok." He smiled.

"So what's this about your amazing record collection? Tell me everything!" Lane demanded.

Olivia smiled as they sat down at a table at Luke's with them and watched as Ben and Lane started talking music. "Hey!" She smiled as Amy appeared and sat down with them.

"Hey." Amy smiled.

"I think I've been dumped as your brother's all knowing music nerd friend for Lane." Olivia joked.

Amy laughed. "Boys can be so shallow." She joked.

"Absolutely!" Olivia grinned.

"So I hear you're joining us at the weekend." Amy said.

"Yeah, it should be fun!" Olivia smiled.

"Yeah." She smiled. "I was a bit nervous about going because...well, you know. But dad's finally opening up about stuff. This can only be a good thing right?"

"Absolutely." Olivia said.

Amy smiled. "I'm glad dad brought us back here for a visit. We wouldn't have met you guys otherwise."

"Yeah it's been cool hanging out with you two." She smiled.

"I know it's weird but it feels like we've known each other forever. Is that totally crazy?" Amy said.

"Yep." Ben said smirking at her.

"Shut up you." Amy rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, be nice to your sister. She's the one that can tell me all your embarrassing stories." Olivia teased.

"I don't have any." Ben grinned.

"Sure you don't." Olivia grinned.

"Come on you two, we better get going." Steve smiled at his kids as he came up to the table. They were heading to the cabin a day before everyone else so they could get things sorted. "We'll see you tomorrow." He smiled at Olivia.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow." She said, giving them a wave before watching them leave. She glanced back to find Lane smiling at her. "What?" She said.

"Nothing." She said.

"Ok..."

"Ben seems nice." Lane said.

"He is." Olivia said carefully. She saw Lane smiling knowingly at her. "Lane, he's a friend. I've known him for three days." She rolled her eyes.

"Well yeah...but sometimes you just know." She said.

"Lane..."

"I'm just saying he's basically all you've been talking about lately. It just seems like you two clicked pretty much straight away." Lane said.

"He's a friend." Olivia repeated. She sighed. "Look, I know I'm getting better at dealing with stuff but I don't want to force anything. Ben's nice ok? But he's a friend."

"Ok." Lane said. "Sorry."

"I just don't want a repeat of what happened with Tristan. I still feel bad about it." Olivia said.

"No, I get that. I'm sorry." Lane said sincerely. "So this trip sounds fun..."

"Yeah it should be!" Olivia nodded. "It will be nice to get away for a bit. And I know mom's looking forward to spending some time with Luke."

"They have been overly...uh..." Lane said.

"Gross?" Olivia joked.

"No!" Lane laughed. "It's sweet that they're at that stage. And they so belong together. Don't you think they do?"

Olivia smiled. "Yeah. It is sweet." She said softly.

"Anyway, I've got to run. But have a great time ok? I want details when you get back." Lane grinned.

"You got it." She grinned.

"See ya."

"Bye Lane." Olivia laughed.

* * *

The following day Luke, Lorelai, Jess, Rory and Olivia all arrived at the cabin.

"Wow this is beautiful!" Lorelai exclaimed looking around at the surroundings. "What a view!"

Luke smiled. "Yeah it's lovely here." He said.

"You found it!" Steve smiled walking up to them with Ben and Amy following behind them.

"Yeah, it's great to be back here." Luke smiled. "How are you doing?"

Steve smiled. "I'm doing ok." He said. "We..uh..we chatted about some of the happy memories we've had here over the years last night. It was good."

"Good." Luke smiled softly. "Hey you two!" He smiled at Ben and Amy.

"Hey! We're so happy you decided to come." Amy said excitedly.

"We've just started a fire and we were going to start cooking." Ben said.

"Sounds good!" Lorelai grinned.

"We'll let you go dump your bags and then you can join us by the lake if you want." Steve said.

"Sounds good." Luke said.

"Your rooms are up there." He pointed.

A few moments later they were all sat by the water, eating some food. "This is beautiful." Lorelai said. "Thanks so much for inviting us." She smiled at Steve.

"No problem. You're part of Luke's life and he's part of ours so it was a given." Steve said. "We're glad you could come."

Lorelai smiled. "Can I just say now though that I am not going fishing?" She said, causing everyone to laugh.

"I think that was definitely a given, mom." Olivia teased. "You'd probably end up catching a fish and then keeping it in our bathtub or something!"

"Yeah alright! I'm not that bad!" Lorelai smirked.

"Yeah you are." Rory smirked.

"I can't believe my own flesh and blood are ganging up on me." She said with mock horror.

"Well I think you'd be a really good fisher-woman." Luke whispered.

"Oh yeah?" She smirked.

"No. But I thought I'd try and be supportive or else I was worried you'd change your mind about us." He joked.

Lorelai smiled slightly. "That would never happen."

"No?" He smiled.

"Definitely not." She smiled softly. "This is really great. Thanks for letting us be a part of this life with you."

"There's noone I'd rather be here with than you." He smiled softly.

"Oh just kiss already!" Steve grinned.

Lorelai and Luke both blushed. Lorelai glanced at her daughters but they were both grinning at her so she glanced at Luke and slowly leant in before kissing him gently.

"Finally! And now you're officially dating!" Steve grinned, causing everyone to laugh.

 **So I hope you liked it! :) Let me know what you think as I love reading your reviews! Thanks again for your continued support! :)**


	12. Chapter 12

**Thank you for your continued support! I'm glad you're liking the new additions! :) Here's the next chapter! Sorry again for the shortness but I don't think I will be able to update for a few days so I wanted to get something up for you guys. :)**

Chapter 12

Rory glanced across from her bed and saw that her mom and Olivia were still asleep. She quietly got up, grabbed a book and left the cabin quietly. She smiled as she saw the sun just coming out so she sat on the porch with her book. She suddenly felt someone sit down beside her. She smiled as she saw who it was. "You're up early." She said.

"So are you." Jess said.

"Thought I'd enjoy the sunrise." Rory smiled.

"Luke's snoring woke me up." Jess smirked.

"Ah!" She said. "It's really nice here, isn't it?"

"Yeah it is." Jess said. "Luke used to take me to his dad's cabin."

"He did?"

"Yeah. It was just like this." Jess smiled.

"That's nice." Rory smiled at him. She let out a breath and leant her head on his shoulder. "I'm glad we got to come here." She said. "Together."

Jess smiled. "Me too." He said softly.

Rory smiled at him. "Hey Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"This thing we're doing. You...me. I kind of like it." She smiled softly.

"Me too." He smiled, kissing the top of her head. He saw Rory look up at him and smile. He smiled back and slowly leant in and kissed her.

* * *

"Ok so under no circumstances do you take off your life jackets." Luke said as they all prepared to get into canoes to go canoeing for a bit.

"The water's so calm, Uncle Luke. I think we'll be fine." Jess said.

"I mean it, Jess. You don't know what could happen. Promise me, you'll keep them on." He said sternly.

"Geez, ok we'll keep them on." Jess said.

"Good." Luke said.

They then all proceeded to get into their canoes, Luke and Lorelai in one, Steve and Amy in another, Jess and Rory in the third and Olivia and Ben in the fourth.

"Have you ever canoed before?" Ben asked Olivia as he helped her into the canoe.

"Nope. First time." Olivia said.

"I'll take care of you." He said.

"Oh you're an expert then?" She teased.

"Pretty much." He grinned.

"Ok, let's all stick together. There's a nice little cafe down that way. We can stop there and grab something to eat." Steve told them. "Ok let's go!"

"This is actually fun!" Olivia grinned after a while.

"You sound surprised." Ben laughed.

"Yeah well let's just say, this kind of exercise isn't really something us Gilmore girls would normally do." Olivia laughed.

"And yet you're a natural." Ben said.

"You think?" Olivia grinned.

"Oh yeah. Hey, could you grab me the bottle of water behind you?" He asked.

"Sure." She said. She got up, turned round but lost balance as the canoe rocked suddenly and she found herself falling into the water. "Arghh!" She exclaimed. She looked up at Ben to find him laughing. "You totally planned that!" She exclaimed.

"I guess you're not totally a natural then. First rule of canoeing, never stand up suddenly in it!" Ben grinned.

"I can't believe I fell for that one!" Olivia said. "You're meant to be rooting for me, not tricking me!" She said but smirked slightly.

"Ok, I'm sorry." Ben said standing up in it.

"What are you doing?" Olivia said.

Ben stood to one side of the canoe and it tipped him into the water. "Now we're even." He grinned.

Olivia laughed. "And now we're soaked!" She said.

"Hey, at least we have these life jackets. Luke had a point after all." He grinned.

"Alright you two, quit messing around and get over here." Steve shook his head from the shore where everyone else had managed to get to.

Ben smirked. "Sorry." He called. "Here, let me help you." He said, helping Olivia back up onto the canoe.

"Thanks." Olivia said. She then held out her hand and helped him back up. They then managed to make it to the shore.

"You're lucky the water was calm." Steve told them. "You should know better." He told Ben but smirked slightly.

"Sorry." Ben said sheepishly.

"Come on, let's go eat." Steve said.

* * *

"I'm glad they're getting along." Lorelai smiled as she sat by the fire outside the cabin that evening with Luke and Steve.

"Yeah I'm glad Ben and Amy have made some good friends. They always found it hard in New York." Steve said. He sighed. "I was just too blind to see they were miserable there."

"That wasn't your fault." Luke assured him. "You were going through a lot."

"Yeah but I should have noticed they weren't happy. I moved to New York because I wanted to get away from Stars Hollow. But I never thought about what Ben and Amy would think about that." He sighed. "I let them down..."

"Hey, you could never let those kids down." Luke said firmly. "Look at them." He said.

Steve glanced over to where the teenagers were chatting and laughing. "I just wish I could have noticed earlier..."

"They don't blame you. They love you." Luke said. He sighed and glanced at him. "Are you really going to move back here then?" He asked.

Steve sighed. "I know it will be hard but...I think it's time. Ben and Amy are my priority. I want them to be happy. And hey, here I will have my best friend in walking distance, won't I?" He said giving him a small smile.

Luke smiled. "Yeah. You will." He said softly.

Meanwhile, the teenagers were sat closer to the water, eating marshmallows they had roasted over the fire.

"I never knew you two were together!" Amy told Rory and Jess.

"It's pretty new." Rory said.

"Yeah, early days." Jess nodded, glancing over at Olivia but she just smiled at him.

"Well I think it's great!" Amy smiled. "You two are such a good fit."

"Thanks." Rory said ducking her head slightly. "Hey, where are you going?" She asked Olivia.

"Oh, I just thought I'd go for a little walk up the water. I won't be long." Olivia smiled.

"I'll come with you." Ben said getting up and walking off with her. "Everything ok?" He asked glancing at her.

"Yeah, why wouldn't it be?" Olivia said.

"Because you got up pretty quickly when Amy started talking about Rory and Jess dating. Do you not approve of them or something? Do you not get on with Jess?" He asked.

"No! On the contrary." Olivia said quickly. "Jess is great. Really great. I'm happy they're happy." She told him.

"That was convincing." Ben said.

She sighed. "It's...embarrassing..." She said.

"Ok. Well, I still sleep with a cuddly toy." He said.

"What?" She said glancing at him.

"See, nothing can be more embarrassing than that!" He smirked.

Olivia smiled slightly. She sighed. "I sort of...developed feelings for Jess..." She admitted.

"Oh." Ben said surprised. "But..."

"He likes Rory. Yeah." She nodded. "It's ok. I'm ok. I'm dealing better with it. They make each other happy and that's all I want them to be. They're my best friends."

"That's very sweet of you." He said.

"Well I'm a very sweet person." Olivia quipped, her eyes twinkling.

Ben laughed. "I'm seeing that. But seriously, putting their happiness above yours. That's...big." He said. "That's really cool."

Olivia shrugged. "I just want them to be happy."

"And what about you? Are you happy?" Ben asked, glancing at her.

Olivia glanced at him. "Now?" She said. "Yeah. I'm pretty happy." She smiled at him.

"Good." Ben smiled. "You know what will make you even happier?"

"What's that?"

"We're going to be moving back to Stars Hollow. Definitely." Ben said.

"Really?" She said.

"Yep. Dad talked to us our first night here. He doesn't want us to hate our lives anymore. Not that we really hated them. It's just..." He said.

"Stars Hollow feels more like home?" She guessed.

"Yeah." He said. "I know it will be completely different and weird without...well, without mom...but it's still home."

"I get that." She said softly. "Plus, you'll have your music nerdy friend around now." She grinned.

"That is part of the appeal." He laughed.

Olivia grinned. "Come on, we should head back to the others."

* * *

"Thanks for this. We needed it." Steve smiled at Luke as they all gathered by Steve's car back in Stars Hollow.

"We'll see you soon. Let me know when you're moving and I'll come and help you pack." Luke said.

"Thanks." Steve said. "I need to sort out what to do with the house in New York and then look for a new place around here."

"You're not going back to your old place?" He asked.

"No. I think that would be one step too far. It would be too weird." Steve said.

"Yeah. I get that." Luke said. "Keep in touch yeah? I'll see you soon." He smiled giving his friend a hug.

"You too." Steve smiled.

"I know it probably won't be too long until we see each other but I'll miss you." Amy said hugging Rory and Olivia and then Jess.

"Yeah we'll miss you too!" Rory said.

"Absolutely!" Olivia nodded. "But hopefully it won't take too long for you to move back."

"Hopefully." Amy smiled. "I can't wait!"

Olivia glanced at Ben. "So...I guess this is goodbye for now..." She said.

"Yep." He nodded. "But not for long hopefully."

"Hopefully." She smiled. She glanced at him and could sense the others watching them. "So..uh..goodbye?" She said.

Ben smiled and pulled her in for a hug. "Bye." He said. "You need to promise you'll keep in touch. I need my music nerd friend to keep me sane. We'll phone each other yeah?"

Olivia smiled. "Absolutely." She said.

"Right, let's hit the road." Steve smiled. "See you kids soon."

"Bye." Olivia smiled. She watched them get into the car and watched it drive off before letting out a breath. She felt Rory come and stand beside her. "Don't say anything." She said quietly.

"You and Ben..." Rory said hesitantly.

"We're friends." Olivia said.

"I was going to say...I'm glad you guys hit it off so well." Rory said. "As friends." She added. "You seem to have a lot in common."

Olivia smiled gratefully at her. "Thank you." She said softly. She watched Rory smile at her before heading into the diner. She looked in the direction that Steve's had gone. "We do." She said quietly, biting her lip slightly. She sighed and then slowly turned round and followed her sister into the diner.

 **So I hope you liked it! Please keep the reviews going as I really love reading what you all think so thank you! :) Thanks again for all your support! :)**


	13. Chapter 13

**Thank you for your continued support! Here's the next chapter. :)**

Chapter 13

"I can't believe you finally persuaded mom to clear out some clothes!" Olivia said.

"It took some convincing but it was her idea to have this junk sale in the first place so she knew she had to donate some items." Rory said.

A few weeks had passed since their trip and Rory, Jess, Olivia and Lane were in the living room at the Crap Shack sorting through items for the junk sale that all the townspeople had donated.

"Sweater?" Olivia said holding one up.

"Over here." Lane said before catching it and putting it on a pile behind her.

"Jeans?" Rory asked.

"Back of you." Lane said.

"A big furry purple thing that could be either a hat, a toilet paper cover or some kind of dirty hand puppet?" Jess said smirking slightly.

"Mystery box on the left." Lane laughed as Luke entered the house.

"Hey." He said.

"Hey Luke!" Olivia smiled.

"Where do you want these?" He asked.

"What do you have?" Rory asked.

"Clothes, rags and some old pots and pans." He said.

"Kitchenware can go in the kitchen and the clothes can go right over there." Olivia said.

Luke nodded and dropped the clothes bag in the living room and went into the kitchen to put the other bag.

"Ah there's a man in my kitchen!" A voice exclaimed behind him.

Luke smiled slightly and turned round to find Lorelai standing there, grinning at him. "Hey." He said.

"Hey back." She grinned.

"So you're running this thing huh?" He said.

"It was hot at that town meeting. I wasn't thinking straight." She said.

"Do you ever?" Luke smirked slightly.

"You could help me?" She said hopefully.

"Ha! No way! This is the only thing I'll do to help." He said gesturing to the bags.

"Fine." She pouted.

"I can take you out afterwards though..." Luke said, glancing at her.

"Oh yeah?" Lorelai grinned. "Where to?"

"I have some ideas." He said.

"So a first official date huh?" Lorelai said.

"If that's what you want to call it." Luke said.

Lorelai smiled. "I think that would be a pretty good name for it, yeah." She said softly.

"Ok then. I'll see you." He smiled.

"Bye." Lorelai smiled before heading back into the living room. "So Luke has just asked me out on my first date..." She said.

"And I'm out." Jess said. "I'll see you later?" He asked Rory.

"See you later." Rory smirked slightly. She gave him a quick peck before he left.

"So when's this date?" Olivia asked.

"After this rummage sale." Lorelai said.

"Aw mom, we're so excited for you!" Olivia said.

"Yeah, it's so cool you're finally having your first date." Rory smiled.

"Thanks." She smiled softly at them just as Sookie came rushing in.

"Ok, you guys are going to love me!" She exclaimed.

"We already love you." Lorelai said.

"No, I mean you're really going to love me." Sookie said.

"We do." Lorelai said.

"Trust me, you guys are going to so love me." She grinned.

"Ok, the love is starting to fade now, Sook." Lorelai joked.

"I have here in my hand, as requested by Ms. Lorelai Gilmore, six fabulous tickets to the Bangles at the Pastorella theatre on Saturday!" She said excitedly.

"What?" Lorelai exclaimed excitedly.

"No!" Olivia exclaimed.

"Do you love me?" Sookie said.

"Oh baby do I!" Lorelai grinned. "You're the best, Sook!"

"Are these good seats? These look like good seats." Lane said.

"9th row, aisle." Sookie nodded.

"I can't believe you got me my tickets! How did you score these?" Lorelai asked.

"Remember the Birnbaum wedding?"

"Fiji fantasy?"

"Yes! They were so thrilled with the volcano wedding cake that they wanted to do something nice for me and since Mr. Birnbaum runs a ticket agency and I knew you were dying to go, so I asked him if he could..." Sookie smiled.

"Make four girls very happy." Lorelai grinned.

"Yeah and he did!"

"Huzzah for the Birnbaums!"

"Hey Sookie, if you got six tickets and you and mom go, then that means..." Olivia said.

"Hmm, one for you, one for Rory and one for Lane!" She grinned. "And I thought maybe you'd like to invite Jess." She told Rory, who grinned in reply.

"This is going to b amazing!" Lorelai said. "Thanks so much!" She grinned, hugging her friend.

"No problem! I'll see you guys later!" Sookie smiled.

"Bye Sook!" She smiled.

* * *

"Girls, I think your friends are here!" Lorelai called as she looked out of the window.

"I still can't believe we were put in the same group as them. This is going to be torture." Olivia groaned.

"Yep." Rory sighed.

"Take heart my dears. Suffer today, party tonight." Lorelai grinned.

"I still can't believe Sookie got those tickets!" Olivia smiled.

"It's going to be amazing. Just keep that as a motivation of getting through this study session." Lorelai said before opening the door. "Hi." She smiled.

"Hi." Louise said.

"Hi." Madeline said.

"Come on in." Lorelai smiled at them.

"So did you guys find it ok?" Rory asked.

"There's no sign on this street." Paris said.

"I know, that's why we told you to turn right at the big rooster statue." Olivia said.

"I thought you were kidding." Paris said.

"Oh no, we never kid about Monty." Lorelai said.

"Monty?" Louise said.

"Monty the rooster - Monty." She said.

"Oh." Louise said clearly not impressed.

"Everybody, this is our mom." Rory said. "Mom, this is Louise, Madeline and Paris."

"Ah, very good girl-group names." Lorelai joked but didn't get a response. "Ok, so...um...sorry about the house of horrors here. Some crazy lady volunteered to lead this charity thing and we're trying to get her some help, so make yourselves comfortable. Rory, Liv, just yell when you guys want pizza." She smiled before disappearing back upstairs.

"So do you guys want to study in here or in the kitchen?" Olivia asked.

"Whatever." Paris said.

"Ok." Olivia sighed. "Let's sit then." She said and they all sat down on the floor in the living room.

"Ok, so here's how it should go. Madeline will do the introductions, I'll handle the debate, Rory will do the conclusion and Olivia and Louise will take questions." Paris said.

"Why do you automatically get to handle the debate?" Rory said.

"Because I'm the most experienced at it." She said.

"Trust me, you want her to handle the debate. She never gives up." Madeline said.

"Le pitbull." Louise nodded.

"Ok." Rory sighed.

"So what is all this stuff?" Louise asked.

"Uh, it's for a big town rummage sale." Rory said.

"Like a charity thing?" Madeline asked.

"Yeah. There's this old bridge that's completely falling apart and the town's trying to save it." Rory nodded.

"Cool!" Madeline smiled.

"Oh here Paris. Tristan might like this." Louise smirked holding up a pink sequinned dress.

"Can we just work please?" Paris said.

"Oh of course, he only seems to have eyes for Olivia." Louise smirked.

Olivia glanced at Paris who was just focused on her papers. "Nothing's going on between me and Tristan." She said. "We're just friends."

"But you want more right?" Louise said.

"No. We're just good friends." Olivia said. She saw Paris glance up slightly at that. She gave her a small smile and surprisingly Paris returned the action. "Paris is right. We should probably work." She said.

"I agree." Rory said.

"Thank you." Paris said. "So we'll need the actual quotes so learn them by heart." She told them.

"What about using note cards?" Madeline said.

"Note cards look sloppy. We will know our information." Paris said.

"But the other teams will use note cards." Madeline said.

"And the other team will lose." Paris pointed out.

"Bye girls, Rory, Liv, see you tonight!" Sookie said appearing from upstairs and heading out.

"Bye Sookie!" Rory smiled.

"Bye!" Olivia waved.

"What's tonight?" Louise asked.

"We've got tickets to see the Bangles at the Pastorella theatre." Rory said.

"In New York?"

"Yeah."

"Sounds potentially not boring." Louise said.

"It's going to be great actually and the seats are amazing." Rory smiled.

"So great!" Olivia grinned.

"I can't believe we're not free tonight." Louise said. "We could have come with you."

"With whose tickets?" Olivia frowned.

"Yours obviously." Louise said. "But we've got dates."

"What a shame." Olivia said dryly and she could swear she saw Paris' mouth twitch slightly. She then had an idea. "Hey, we've got a spare ticket actually. Our friend can't come anymore. Paris, do you fancy it?" She said, ignoring the incredulous look she was getting from Rory.

"What?" Paris said surprised.

"The Bangles are great." She said.

"You really want to invite me? Why?" Paris said.

"Could be fun." Olivia shrugged.

Paris looked at her for a moment. "I have homework." She said quietly.

"So do I!" Olivia grinned. "Come on, you'll love The Bangles. Live a little!"

"Fine. But if I fail, I'm blaming you." Paris warned.

"Duly noted." She said.

* * *

That evening, they were stood in the Pastorella Theatre in New York, getting ready to go in.

"I still can't believe you invited Paris." Rory whispered to Olivia.

"She could do with a night out." Olivia shrugged. "Plus I felt a bit sorry for her. Didn't you see her face when the others were teasing her about Tristan? They're meant to be her friends." She said.

"Yeah, that was a bit mean." Rory conceded.

"You never know, this might lighten her up a bit." Olivia said.

"Right, Sookie and I are going to hit the ladies' room. Meet you at the seats?" Lorelai told them.

"Sure." Rory nodded and she, Olivia, Jess and Paris started to head inside.

"Hey music nerd!" A voice suddenly shouted.

Olivia turned round and her face lit up. "Ben?" She exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Same thing you're doing!" Ben grinned as he and Amy walked up to them.

"You like The Bangles?" Olivia raised her eyebrows.

"No. But Amy loves them." Ben said. "Plus they were our mom's favourite band. Amy got the tickets got I thought I'd come in mom's honour." He smiled softly.

"They're our mom's favourite band as well." Olivia smiled softly.

"Where are you sat?" Rory asked them.

"Uh..12th row, I think." Amy said glancing at their tickets. "You?"

"9th." Olivia said. "Looks like we'll be close then."

"Cool!" Amy said.

"We better head in." Rory said.

"Are you free after? We could catch up for a bit?" Ben suggested.

"Well...why don't you come back to Stars Hollow?" Olivia suggested. "You could stay the night at ours if you want. We've got a charity rummage sale tomorrow as well which will be fun. Unless you have to get back to your dad."

"Well...it is the weekend tomorrow so I don't see why dad wouldn't be ok with it." Amy said. "We'll send him a text and let you know after ok?"

"Sounds good." Rory smiled. "See you guys after."

"Enjoy the show." Amy grinned.

"You too!" Olivia grinned.

* * *

After the show, the four teenagers were all waiting in the foyer of the theatre waiting for Ben and Amy as Lorelai and Sookie had gone to get the cars.

"Olivia?" Paris said quietly, glancing over at Rory and Jess who were focused on their own conversation.

"Yeah?" Olivia said.

"You and Tristan...are you...well, before, you told Madeline and Louise you were just friends but..." Paris said hesitantly.

"But what?" Olivia said.

"Well...is that true?"

"Why would I lie?"

"I don't know. I just...It's obvious Tristan likes you like that. And you...well, you seem to hang around with him a lot and you seem to like him as well." Paris said.

"I do." Olivia said. "But as a friend." She said. She sighed. "There was a moment when I thought...maybe...something could happen. But...I was going through some stuff at the time and the moment passed."

"Ok." Paris said quietly.

Olivia glanced at her. "You know, you could just ask him out if you like him." She said cautiously.

"What? Seriously? Like he would ever want to go out with someone like me." She said.

"Why not?"

"Because Tristan doesn't like girls like me. He likes you and I am nothing like you." Paris said.

Olivia sighed. "Look, I know you and I haven't gotten off on the right foot but I have nothing against you, Paris. And I happen to think you could be anything you wanted. If you want Tristan, go get him." She said. "You're hard working, you're driven, I feel like there's a heart under there somewhere." She smiled slightly.

"Thanks." Paris said dryly but smiled slightly.

"Why wouldn't Tristan like you? And if he doesn't, well...maybe it's his loss." Olivia shrugged. "And hey, at least you would know then and be able to move on from your feelings. I've had to." Olivia admitted.

"So you did have feelings for Tristan?" Paris asked.

"Not Tristan." Olivia said, glancing over at Jess and Rory. "Uh...it was someone else..." She said.

Paris followed her gaze. "Rory's boyfriend?" She said surprised.

Olivia sighed. "We've known each other since we were five. We're really close. I guess at some point, my feelings changed slightly. But him and Rory are really happy and I'm learning to deal with it." She admitted.

"Wow. That's really...cool of you." Paris said quietly. She saw Olivia glance at her. "Honestly. I don't think I could have done that." She said.

"I love them both. I just want them to be happy." She said.

"And you've got someone else you like now, right?" Paris said.

"What?" Olivia said surprised.

"He's coming towards us now." She said nodding towards Ben and Amy who were heading towards them.

"Who? Ben? No, we're..."

"Just friends?" Paris smiled slightly. "Ok."

Olivia blushed slightly. "Look, please don't say anything. I don't know how I feel really. I'm still trying to sort out my feelings and I don't want to lead anyone on until I do that. I don't want to hurt anyone else. It wasn't fair on Tristan and I don't want to do it to anyone else."

"Fair enough." Paris said.

"So you won't say anything?"

"You keep my secret and I'll keep yours." She said smirking slightly.

"Oh I see how it is!" Olivia laughed. "There's the real Paris!"

"So we have a deal?" She smirked.

"Ok deal." Olivia smirked.

"Hey Olivia?" Paris said quietly.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for inviting me tonight. I...well I think this may be the best night I've ever had." She admitted.

Olivia smiled. "I'm glad you came." She said softly. "And hey, now you can see Rory and I aren't really as bad as you thought right?"

Paris ducked her head slightly. "Yeah...I guess so."

Ben and Amy reached them and then they all headed outside to meet Lorelai and Sookie and head back to Stars Hollow.

* * *

"Great night huh?" A voice said from the doorway to the kitchen.

Olivia turned and smiled at Ben. "The best." She grinned.

"You know what, The Bangles, they're not half bad." Ben said.

"Ha I knew you liked them!" Olivia laughed. "You want a soda?" She asked.

"Sure." He nodded. "Thanks again for letting us stay over."

"You don't need to thank us." Olivia said. "Are you and Amy sure you're ok on the couch and mattress on the floor?"

"Yeah we're fine." Ben nodded. "So this rummage sale your mom has organised, it's tomorrow?"

"Yeah, in the town square." She nodded. "When do you need to get back to your dad?"

"Not til late. He's doing sorting stuff out with the house and things so he said we'd probably enjoy it more here anyway." He said.

"How's all that going?" Olivia asked.

"It's ok. We've already had some interest for our place and dad has already been researching places around here. I'm hoping it won't be too long until we move." He said.

"That's cool." She smiled.

"I think so." He smiled back at her. "I know it's only been a few weeks but I've missed you."

"Me too." Olivia admitted. "Although you may change your mind about moving back here when you know I will be mocking you for liking The Bangles for the rest of your life." She grinned.

Ben chuckled. "I think I'll manage."

"Suit yourself." She grinned, her eyes twinkling.

Ben grinned. "Give me those bowls. I'll help you take the sweets in to the others."

"Thanks." She smiled handing them over to him before grabbing another two himself.

"Hey Liv?" He said. "I can call you Liv right? I know everyone does but I know I've not known you that long and I know normally people who have known people for years can call them by their nicknames...What?" He said seeing Olivia stifling a laugh.

"Boy, you've got the rambling disease from us." She joked. "Liv is fine." She added.

"Good to know." Ben smirked. "Anyway...I was going to say I'm glad we met. I feel like I've known you for ages. I don't get that with many people." He said.

Olivia smiled. "Me neither." She admitted. "And the feeling's mutual."

Ben nodded. "Should we go watch movies until we fall asleep then?" He grinned.

"Let's go!" She grinned. She smiled as she watched him grin at her before walking back through to the living room. She let out a slight breath before following him through.

 **So I hope you enjoyed it! :) Please keep letting me know what you think! I do love reading your reviews and your support really does mean so much to me so thank you! :)**


	14. Chapter 14

**Thank you for your continued support! Here's the next chapter! :)**

Chapter 14

"Oh wow! Look at how many books there are!" Rory exclaimed as they walked round the rummage sale in the square. "Come on!" She grinned at Jess and rushed off.

"Wait up! Count me in!" Amy called following them.

"It's cool you got to stay for this." Olivia smiled at Ben as they walked around the different stalls.

"Yeah. Thanks for letting us stay over." He smiled.

"Oh you don't need to thank me. It was fun." She said.

"Yeah it was." Ben smiled.

"Hey Gilmore!" A voice called.

Olivia turned round and smiled. "Dugrey! What are you doing here?" She asked.

"You mentioned this the other day at school and I thought I'd come and support a good cause and check it out." Tristan said.

"And laugh at my crazy town again?" Olivia smirked.

"Maybe." He smirked.

"Oh, Tristan, this is Ben by the way. His dad is good friends with Luke." Olivia said. "Ben, this is Tristan. He's a friend from school."

"Nice to meet you." Ben said holding out his hand.

"You too." Tristan said shaking it.

"So you take the same classes?" Ben asked.

"Yep. Liv keeps me sane at school. Gets me through the lessons." Tristan said.

"That is if you actually turn up to the lessons." Olivia smirked.

"That's true." Tristan smirked.

"Cool." Ben said.

"Hey, guess what! Do you want some gossip?" Tristan asked Olivia.

"Of course!" She grinned.

"Paris asked me out." He said.

"What?" She said surprised.

"Yeah, we were messaging last night. And suddenly she just asked me out." Tristan said.

"Wow!" Olivia said. "So...what did you say?"

"Well...I said no." He said.

"What? Why?" She exclaimed.

"Uh..because she's not really my type..." Tristan said.

"Urgh...Paris is going to kill me!" Olivia groaned.

"What, why?" He said.

"Because I was the one who encouraged her to ask you out!"

"Why?" He asked.

"Because she's crazy about you, that's why! She has been for years apparently! And we were having a really nice chat and now she's going to hate me again because you screwed that up!" She exclaimed.

"Sorry..." Tristan said. "Would you rather I go out with her even though I don't feel that way about her? Because I think that's even more mean."

Olivia sighed. "No, it's not your fault. I just...Paris is going to go back to hating me now..."

"Nah she's not. After she asked me out, I rang her and we actually had a good chat. She admitted everything about how she felt and I apologised for not noticing and for acting like a jerk. But I really don't feel that way about her. I value my friendship with her and I told her that." He said.

"Wow...so you had a proper conversation..."

"Pretty much. It was nice." Tristan said. "She said it was ok and that she was happy to just be my friend."

"Wow...so she wasn't angry or upset?" Olivia asked.

"Maybe a bit disappointed but I think she understood. And she appreciated my honesty." He said.

"Well...that's good then." She smiled.

"I'm going to go check out some of these stalls. Check in with you later?" Tristan said.

"Sure!" Olivia said watching him walk off.

"Ok, who was that?" Amy said appearing at her side.

"Who was who?" Olivia said.

"That guy who were just talking to!" She said.

"Oh, you mean Tristan?" She said.

"If Tristan is the name of that cute guy you were talking to, then yeah!" Amy grinned.

"What?" Olivia laughed.

"Oh come on, you can't deny that he is hot!" She said.

Olivia smirked slightly. "Well, I guess..."

"What's his story?" Amy asked. "Is he single?"

"Uh...yeah." She said.

"Is he a friend? Could you set me up?" Amy said excitedly.

"Seriously? You want to go out with Tristan?" Olivia laughed.

"Well yeah! He's so cute! And he's your friend right? So he must be nice as well." She grinned. "Please Olivia! Hook a friend up!"

Olivia smirked. "Ok...well I'll see him later so I'm sure I could introduce you."

"I love you!" Amy grinned.

"You really want to go out with him? He doesn't seem like your type." Ben said.

"And how do you know what my type is?" Amy said.

"Well, not cocky rich boys for a start." Ben commented.

"Hey, Tristan's not like that!" Olivia frowned.

"All guys who go to posh schools like Tristan are like that." Ben said.

"That's a bit of a stereotype. So are Rory and I cocky rich girls?" She said.

"No! Obviously not! You come from a different background that all those other kids." Ben said.

"Right..." Olivia said.

"Uh...I'm going to go get us some food." He said suddenly awkwardly before rushing off.

"What was that about?" Olivia asked Amy.

"Search me." Amy shrugged.

"Look, Tristan really isn't like what Ben described. Trust me. He's cool." Olivia said.

"I know. If you're friends with him, he must be nice." Amy smiled. "And I'll be forever grateful to you."

"Hey, look, here he is now!" Olivia said. "That wasn't long." She grinned at Tristan.

"It's not as fun looking around by myself." Tristan grinned.

"Poor you." She teased. She glanced at Amy. "Well maybe you don't have to do it alone. Tristan, this is Amy. She's Ben's sister." She smiled.

"Nice to meet you." Tristan smiled at her.

"Yeah...you too." Amy said nervously.

"Amy was looking for someone to go round the stalls with while I go grab some food. Want to keep her company in the meantime?" Olivia said.

Tristan smirked and glanced at Amy. "That ok with you?" He asked.

"Uh..yeah...if you want." Amy smiled.

"After you." He smiled.

"Ok..." Amy said, smiling excitedly at Olivia before walking off with him.

"I see that you are moving him on quickly then..." A voice said behind her.

"Paris!" Olivia said surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I thought I'd offer my support for this rummage sale and also tell you that Tristan turned me down but you obviously already know that seeing as you're setting him up with someone else already." She commented.

Olivia sighed. "Tristan said you had a nice chat. I'm really sorry it didn't end up how you wanted. But Tristan said you were good." She said.

"We did." Paris said crossing her arms against her chest.

Olivia sighed. "Look, if you don't want me to do this, I'll try and put Amy off. If it's too soon for you..."

"Seriously?" Paris said surprised. "You'd do that for me?"

"If it's what you want. Paris, you're my friend as well. Well, I think you are. If this makes you upset, I'll fix it." Olivia said.

Paris sighed. "No, it's fine." She said. "I just...I guess I'm still a bit disappointed. I sort of had my hopes up and well...you know."

"I'm sorry." She said. "I sort of feel responsible. I encouraged you to ask me out."

"No, it's ok. I'm glad I did. Otherwise I would be living the rest of my life wondering what if." Paris said. "Anyway, Tristan deserves happiness and if your friend can give him that, who am I to stand in their way right?"

"That's very noble of you." Olivia smiled.

"Well...I learnt it off a friend." Paris shrugged before giving her a small smile.

Olivia smiled. "So what are you doing here? This doesn't really seem like something you'd go to..."

"Well, I sort of wanted to see you. Well, both you and Rory actually." She admitted. "I was going to ask if you both wanted to split the debate time with me."

"Really?" She said surprised.

"Yeah. You two are just as good as me. It's only fair." She said.

"Well, thanks! I'm sure Rory will be excited as well." Olivia said.

"She is! Hey Paris!" Rory smiled walking up to them with Jess.

"Hi." Paris smiled.

"So we're splitting the debate time?" Rory asked.

"If you want to?" Paris said.

"Yeah of course! Thanks Paris!" Rory smiled.

"Well, I'll leave you to it. See you at school."

"Bye Paris." Olivia smiled.

* * *

"Hey, we should all do something when mom goes out on her date with Luke!" Rory said.

"We should probably get home..." Ben said.

Olivia glanced at him and frowned. He'd been quiet and a bit moody ever since meeting Tristan and she didn't know why.

"Oh nonsense! Dad won't mind if we're a bit later." Amy said. "What do you have in mind?"

"We could triple date." Jess suggested.

"What?" Rory laughed.

"Well...I was sort of hoping to use this time to take you out on our first date as well." Jess said, ducking his head slightly.

"Aw that's sweet!" Rory smiled.

"But we could all go out maybe." Jess said. "We could invite Tristan." He told Amy.

"Well I'm in then!" Amy grinned.

"Uh, can I just point out that that sort of leaves me and Ben as gooseberries...?" Olivia said.

"Yeah but you could still come together. It doesn't matter that you're not going out. It'll be fun." Jess said.

Rory glanced at Olivia. "Only if you want. We can always do something else."

Olivia glanced at Ben. "Well...I guess I don't mind if...Ben's ok with it?"

Ben glanced at her and sighed. "Sure, why not? It'll be fun to spend some more time with you all before we head back."

"Ok then." Olivia smiled slightly. "So should we say 7?"

"Sounds good." Jess nodded.

"It's a date!" Rory grinned.

* * *

Lorelai followed Luke into a restaurant. "Aren't we meant to wait to be seated?" She asked as Luke led her straight to a table.

"It's cool." Luke said.

"Is this like a mafia thing?" She joked.

"Definitely like a mafia thing." He smirked. "Here, sit." He said.

"Thanks." She grinned. "This is a nice place." She said.

"Yeah it is." Luke smiled. "Friends of my parents own it. I actually come here quite a bit. I try to anyway."

"Wow, Luke has a Luke's." She grinned.

Luke chuckled. "Something like that." He said. He glanced at her. "So I'm glad we got to do this."

"Me too." Lorelai smiled.

"It only took about 11 years." Luke smiled slightly.

Lorelai laughed. "We got here in the end though." She said.

"Yeah we did." Luke smiled.

"Hey, do you remember when we first met?" She asked.

"What?"

"I was thinking the other day about this. It must have been at Luke's right?" She said.

"It was at Luke's, it was at lunch, it was a very busy day, the place was packed and this person..." Luke said.

"Ooh, is it me? Is it me?" Lorelai gasped.

"This person comes tearing into the place in a caffeine frenzy." He smiled slightly.

"Ooh, it's me." Lorelai grinned.

"I was with a customer. She interrupts me, wild-eyed, begging for coffee so I tell her to wait her turn. Then she starts following me around, talking a mile a minute, saying god knows what. So finally I turn to her and I tell her she's being annoying. I tell her to sit down, shut up, I'll get to her when I get to her." He continued.

"You know, I bet she took that very well because she sounds just delightful." She smiled.

"She asked me what my birthday was. I wouldn't tell her. She wouldn't stop talking. I gave in. I told her my birthday. Then she opened up the newspaper to the horoscope page, wrote something down, tore it out, handed it to me." Luke said.

"I did?" She said.

"So I'm looking at this piece of paper in my hand, and under "Scorpio," she had written, 'You will meet an annoying woman today. Give her coffee and she'll go away." I gave her coffee." Luke smiled.

"But she didn't go away." Lorelai grinned.

"She told me to hold on to that horoscope, put it in my wallet, and carry it around with me." He said pulling out his wallet. "She told me one day it would bring me luck." He said. "And I guess it did." He smiled.

"Well, man, I will say anything for a cup of coffee." Lorelai said stunned. "I can't believe you kept this. You kept this in your wallet?"

"Eleven years." He nodded.

"Eleven years." She said softly.

Luke sighed and put it back in his wallet. "I guess that day...meeting you...I guess I realised I'd met a pretty amazing person." He said softly.

Lorelai smiled. "Well...the feeling was mutual. Why do you think I kept coming back to the diner?"

"I thought it was for the coffee."

"Well yeah, obviously!" She teased. "But there was another reason as well." She smiled softly. "Maybe I didn't realise it at the time but I knew I loved your company."

"Loved annoying me more like." He smirked.

"That as well!" She grinned.

Luke smiled at him. "Lorelai, this thing we're doing here...me, you...I just want you to know I'm in. I am all in." He said softly. "Is that..uh..is that ok with you?" He said carefully.

Lorelai smiled softly and took hold of his hand. "That is more than ok with me." She said.

* * *

"So Amy and Tristan seem to be hitting it off..." Ben said.

Olivia glanced at him and then over at Amy and Tristan who were sat together watching the movie at the movie theatre. "Yeah..." She said cautiously.

"I've not seen her this happy for a while." Ben said.

"Same with Rory." Olivia said smiling as she watched Jess and Rory snuggled together on the red couch. She glanced at him. "So you're not going to try and put Amy off him then? Seeing as he's so obviously a cocky rich boy?" She said.

Ben glanced at her and sighed. "That was a jerky thing to say. I'm sorry." He said. "He's your friend and I was rude earlier. He actually seems kind of cool."

"Yeah. He is." Olivia nodded.

"I guess I just felt a bit...I don't know...intimidated by him." Ben admitted.

"Intimidated? Why?" She said confused.

"Because I'm an idiot. And you two seem to get on really well. I guess I was sort of jealous." He said awkwardly.

"Jealous? Why would you be jealous?" Olivia said.

Ben hesitated for a moment. "I..uh..I thought maybe he liked you..." He admitted. "Like, like liked you."

"Oh." She said surprised.

"It was stupid." Ben said.

"But then you found out that Amy liked him so...?"

"Like I said, I'm an idiot. And I'm sorry if I was rude and if I offended you." Ben said sincerely.

"Ok..." Olivia said still a bit confused. "But I still don't get..."

"Ok fine, I like you ok?" Ben admitted. "I like you and I got all jealous because I thought Tristan liked you. I know you were trying to set him up with Amy but I felt intimidated by him and it was stupid. And now I feel embarrassed so I'm going to go." He said getting up and rushing out.

Olivia watched him leave, stunned. She waited a moment before getting up and rushing after him. "Ben, wait!" She called catching up to him.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have sprung it on you like that. And I know you have your own stuff to work through. I do know that." He said. "I just...I've never clicked with someone so much as I have with you from the first day. I feel like we just hit it off straight away and I don't know...that doesn't really happen to me."

"It doesn't really happen to me either." She admitted. She sighed. "I do like you, Ben. I love spending time with you. I just...I don't want to lead you on. I don't want to make the same mistake I made before. It wouldn't be fair on you." She said. She glanced at him. "I don't know what to say. I...It's complicated."

"I get that." Ben said. "And I don't want to pressure you at all. It's ok. I think I might just head home. Tell Amy I'll see her back there. Maybe we should just take some time and not talk all the time."

"What?" She said.

"I mean, I love our phone calls but maybe that's just putting more pressure on us." He said. "Maybe we should wait until we actually move here?"

"But that could take weeks yet." Olivia said quietly.

"Maybe." He nodded.

"I...I don't want that." She admitted.

"Well, I don't either. But I don't know what else to suggest." Ben said. He sighed. "I really like you. But as I said, I don't want you to feel pressured or awkward or anything. So maybe if the phone calls stopped, it would take that pressure and awkwardness away."

"You really want our phone calls to stop?" Olivia said quietly.

"No." He said honestly. "But I care more about you than myself. If this helps you, then I will do it."

"Really? You'd do that for me? You would make me feel comfortable even though it would make you miserable?" She said touched.

"Well...yeah..." Ben said.

"Well...it would make me miserable as well so I don't think we should." Olivia said hesitantly.

"What?"

"The fact that you would put your feelings aside for me. That's...so sweet." She said softly. "But I don't need you to. And...I don't want you to." She said nervously.

"What are you saying?" Ben said.

"I'm saying...well...I'm saying..." Olivia tried but hesitated. She took a deep breath. "I'm saying...maybe I'm ready to move on."

"Move on?" Ben questioned.

"Yeah.." She said, smiling nervously. "You were right. I've never clicked with someone so immediately like I have done with you. It's a...well, it's a nice feeling. Kind of...special...don't you think?"

Ben smiled softly. "Yeah it is." He said. "Are you sure about this?"

Olivia smiled softly and stepped forward. "Does this answer your question?" She said before kissing him.

"Only if this is a good enough reaction." He smirked slightly as he reciprocated her action.

 **So I hope you liked it! Please keep the reviews coming as I love reading what you all think! Thank you again for all your support! It really does mean so much to me. :)**


	15. Chapter 15

**Thank you for your continued support! Sorry this is a bit shorter but I wanted to get something up as I won't be able to update until probably a week on Sunday as my mum's coming back tomorrow and then we're away for the weekend and then are going on holiday for the week. I hope you enjoy this chapter in the meantime! :)**

Chapter 15

"So...I wish Amy and I didn't have to go back tonight..." Ben said as he held Olivia's hand as they walked up the porch to the Crap Shack.

"I wish you didn't have to either." Olivia said. "There's no way you can stay another night?" She asked.

"I'm sure dad would let us but I'd feel sort of bad. He's been doing everything to sort out our move all by himself. I feel like I should be there to at least help a bit." Ben said.

"That's sweet." She smiled.

"But I reckon we have a bit over an hour until that movie ends and the others come back." Ben said.

"I like that." Olivia grinned. "Want a soda?" She asked as they walked into the living room. "Mom?" She called.

"Looks like they're still out." Ben said.

"Seems like it." She said.

"And yeah, a soda would be nice." He smiled.

"Great, take a seat and I'll go get us some soda."

"Sounds good." He smiled.

Olivia went into the kitchen and immediately got her cell out. She dialled a familiar number and waited for an answer.

* * *

Rory glanced at Jess and saw him watching her, smiling. "What?" She laughed.

"You look cute while you watch a movie." Jess smirked.

"Shut up." Rory said blushing slightly.

"And now you look even cuter when you're embarrassed." He said.

"Just watch the movie." She smirked just as her cell rang. "Oops, I must have forgotten to put it on silent. I'll be right back." She told him, taking her cell out and walking outside. "Hello?" She answered.

"Help!" Olivia exclaimed.

"What? Liv, what's going on?" Rory said confused.

"Something happened between me and Ben and now he's here at the house and I'm alone with him and I don't know how to act around him!" She exclaimed.

"Ok slow down! What's happened between you and Ben? And why are you whispering?" She said.

Olivia let out a breath. "We...uh...we kissed." She admitted.

"You and Ben?" Rory smiled.

"Yeah." She said. "It just...happened. It's still all a bit of a blur but it happened and now we're back at the house and he's in the other room and I don't know what he's expecting. How do I react? How do I act around him?"

"Ok firstly, you need to calm down." Rory smirked slightly. "Just act normally." She said. "Do you..uh..did this kiss mean something to you both? Do you...well...do you want this to turn into something?" She asked cautiously, knowing about her feelings with Jess and how things had happened between her and Tristan.

Olivia felt herself smiling slightly. "Yeah." She admitted. "Yeah, I really think I do. But I don't want to mess this up."

"You won't." Rory said. "You and Ben...well, I've seen how you are around each other. It's so natural between the two of you."

"Yeah..."

"You need to calm down, though. Just act normally and you'll be fine. Things will develop naturally, I'm sure." Rory assured her. "Him and Amy are heading back tonight so just make the most of the time you have now."

Olivia sighed. "Yeah, you're right." She said. "I'm sorry about interrupting the movie."

"Hey, what are sisters for right?" She smiled.

"Thanks Ror." She smiled softly.

"I'll see you soon."

"Yeah see you soon."

Rory smiled and hung up the phone just as she heard someone come up behind her. "Hey!" She smiled at Jess.

"Hey, everything ok?" He asked.

"Yeah, everything's fine. Olivia just freaked out a bit, that's all. She just needed some sisterly reassurance." She said.

"Freaked out about what?" Jess said.

"Her and Ben kissed apparently." Rory smirked.

"What?" He said surprised.

"Come on, you can't be that surprised. Those two have hit it off from day one." She said.

"I guess..." He said.

"Are you ok? Are you not happy for them?" Rory asked.

"He just better treat her right, that's all." Jess said.

"Oh come on, you've know Ben a long time right? Isn't he a good guy?"

"Yeah...he is." He conceded.

"Well I'm happy for Liv. She deserves this. She deserves some happiness." Rory smiled.

Jess smiled slightly. "Yeah she does." He said. "Hey, how would you like to bail on the movie?"

"We can't leave Amy in there. What if things don't work out between her and Tristan?" She said.

"I think she's just fine. I left them staring gooey eyed at each other. I think she'll cope." Jess smirked.

"Fine." Rory smirked. "What were you thinking?"

* * *

Olivia had put the tv on and they were watching a programme when she felt Ben's arm go round her. She kept her gaze on the tv.

"Hey, are you ok?" He asked.

"What?" She said turning to him.

"Is this...too much?" He asked. "Are you regretting the kiss?"

"What? No!" Olivia said quickly. She sighed. "I'm sorry." She said.

"Look, if I'm putting too much pressure on you..." He said.

"No, you're not." She shook her head. "Why would you think that?"

"Well...your panicked call to Rory kind of tipped me off that something wasn't right." Ben smiled slightly.

"You heard that?" Olivia cringed. "Ben, it was nothing against you. I just..."

"It's cool." He chuckled slightly. "I don't want to mess this up either." He admitted. "I get that it's probably more weird for you considering what you told me. But I want you to know that I don't want to pressure you at all. I don't want to push you to do anything you don't want to do. We can take it as slow as you want." He said.

Olivia smiled softly and leant forward, kissing him gently on the lips. "And that is why I do want this to happen. Thank you." She said softly.

"For what?"

"For being so thoughtful and considerate." She said, leaning her head on his shoulder. "I feel like this is going to be something good." She smiled.

Ben smiled. "Me too." He said softly.

* * *

"So this was nice." Lorelai smiled as Luke walked her through the square.

"Yeah it was." He smiled. "I..uh..I'm glad you agreed to it."

"To what? The date?" She said.

"Yeah. I..uh..I've waited a long time for this." He admitted. "I just...I was worried it would screw up our friendship."

"Yeah..I guess that was at the back of my mind as well." Lorelai admitted. "I'm just glad we decided to go for it though."

"Me too." He smiled. "Fancy a coffee before you head home?" He asked.

"Ok now I'm really pleased that we decided to give this dating a go." She grinned, her eyes twinkling. "Do I get it for free now?"

"You never pay anyway." Luke smirked.

"Yeah but now I can say I'm dating the owner." She grinned.

"True." He chuckled. "Come on crazy lady."

"Right behind you diner boy!"

* * *

"Ok I am forever in debt to you!" Amy exclaimed as she rushed into the living room where Olivia and Ben were, Jess and Rory following behind her.

"For what?" Olivia laughed.

"For setting me up with Tristan! He's amazing!" She grinned.

"Well I'm glad you guys hit it off." Olivia smirked.

"It was great! We just talked and talked and he told me to call him when I was back here permanently." She beamed.

"Aw that's great! I'm happy for you." Olivia smiled. "Where is Tristan?"

"Oh he had to get home. But he told me to tell you thanks for inviting him tonight." She said. "So what happened to you two? You just left halfway through the movie."

"Oh..uh..we just wanted to have some time..." Olivia said.

"We wanted to spend some time together before you and I had to head back." Ben helped her.

Amy glanced between them and saw Olivia's blush and Ben's embarrassed expression and smirked slightly. "Ah I see..." She said. "Well talking about going, we better head back." She told Ben.

"Yeah.." He sighed, getting back. "I'll call you?" He told Olivia.

"You better." She smiled. She gave him a hug before giving him a quick peck. "I'll see you soon?"

"You bet." Ben smiled softly.

"Have a safe journey back." Olivia smiled, giving Amy a hug as well.

"Thanks for this weekend. It's been great." Amy said. "We'll keep you updated."

"Make sure you do." Rory said. "I think we'll like having you around. Especially some of us more than others." She joked, giving her sister and Ben teasing looks.

"Bye Rory." Ben said smirking slightly.

"Bye!" She grinned.

"Bye." He smiled softly at Olivia.

"Bye." She smiled back before watching them leave. She let out a breath before sitting back down.

"So what are we watching?" Rory said sitting down next to her.

Olivia smiled softly at her sister. "Nothing much." She said.

* * *

"Girls?" Lorelai called as she entered the Crap Shack later that evening.

"In here!" Rory called.

"Hey!" She smiled as she saw her daughters in the living room. "Have Ben and Amy left already?" She asked.

"Yep, about half an hour ago." Olivia said.

"You girls have a nice time?" She asked.

"You could say that." Rory grinned over at Olivia.

Olivia rolled her eyes but blushed slightly. "Yeah it was nice." She said.

"Am I missing something?" Lorelai asked glancing between them.

"Nope." Olivia said quickly, giving Rory a look.

"Ok..." Lorelai said unconvinced.

"So how was your date with Luke?" Rory asked getting a grateful look from Olivia in return.

"It was...nice." Lorelai said but couldn't keep the smile off her face.

"Nice? Just nice?" Olivia teased.

"Do you really want to know the details?" She raised her eyebrows.

"Eww no thanks!" Rory quipped.

"But it was good? You had a good time?" Olivia asked. "As in, there will be another date?"

Lorelai smiled softly. "Would you two be ok if there was?" She asked.

"Mom, you know we would." Rory smiled. "We're just happy you're happy. And we love Luke."

"Yeah, you and Luke belong together." Olivia nodded.

"Then...yes...I think there might be another date." Lorelai smiled slightly.

"Aw mom, that's so great!" Rory said.

"Yeah, we're so excited for you!" Olivia grinned.

"Thanks." She smiled softly at them, leaning back on the couch with them watching the tv for a moment. She glanced at her daughters and noticed the similar smiles they had on their faces. "So it looks like we all had a nice evening then..." She commented.

"Yeah..." Both Rory and Olivia answered in unison, causing Lorelai to smirk slightly.

"Hey girls?" She said.

"Yeah?"

"I love you." She smiled softly.

"We love you too." Rory smiled and the two of them snuggled into her as they continued watching the tv.

 **So I hope you liked it! Again, I'm sorry for the shortness but I wanted to get something up for you as I probably won't be able to update for a bit. Please keep your reviews coming though as I love reading them! :) Your support means so much to me so thank you! :)**


	16. Chapter 16

**I've just got home but I really wanted to get something up for you guys! I hope you're all still with me! :) Here's the next chapter. :)**

Chapter 16

Lorelai stopped for a moment, taking the chance to glance through the diner's window. She smiled as she saw her daughters sat at the counter with their school books. As if on cue, she watched as they both looked up expectantly at Luke as he appeared from the kitchen. She grinned as she saw his exasperated look as her daughters very clearly were asking for more coffee and pie. Her grin grew as she watched Olivia get up and attempt to get behind the counter to get the coffee herself. Whilst Luke was distracted, she watched Rory sneak round the counter to get some pie. By the time Luke had realised and had turned round, Olivia had grabbed the coffee and both her daughters were back on the right side of the counter, grinning triumphantly. Lorelai smiled as she saw Luke try and tell them off but ended up chuckling with them. This had become a sort of routine for them all. Rory and Olivia would go to the diner after school to study a bit and annoy Luke and then she would meet them then after she was finished at the inn. She always enjoyed watching them for a moment through the window before going in. She saw that normal service had resumed so she decided to go in and walk up to them. "Hey, how come my daughters can go behind the counter but I can't?" Lorelai grinned.

"Because they're like you. They're not so good with no." Luke said dryly but the corners of his mouth twitched slightly. "Coffee?" He said.

"Do you need to ask?" She said.

"My mistake." He said.

"Hey Luke, thanks for the food and coffee. I'm going to take off. See you tomorrow." Olivia smiled getting up. "Bye mom, I'll see you at home." She said kissing Lorelai's cheek.

"See ya, Olivia." Luke waved.

"See you back there, hon." Lorelai smiled as she watched Olivia leave the diner.

"Yeah I'll see you back home too. I won't be late." Rory said.

"Ok sweets." Lorelai smiled as she watched her daughter head upstairs to the diner apartment.

This was all part of the routine they had started for the last few weeks. She would meet her daughters at the diner after work and then Olivia would take her slice of pie and her coffee back home so that she could have her phone date with Ben and Rory would head upstairs to spend some time with Jess. Olivia had confided in her about the kiss that had happened between her and Ben. She wasn't exactly sure how she felt about having both daughters starting relationships with guys but she knew it was going to happen at some point. When Rory had told her about her and Jess, she was slightly nervous but at least she knew Jess well. She'd known him most of her life and she knew he would treat Rory right. But she didn't know much about Ben. She also couldn't read Olivia as well as she could with Rory. She did know this was the happiest she had seen Olivia for a while though and Luke had assured her that Ben was a good kid and as she knew he had known Ben and his family for a long time, his word was good enough for her. She just never thought she'd have to start worrying about boys this early. Her daughters hadn't really seemed interested in them before but she guessed she could change.

"Coffee for your thoughts?" Luke said taking her out of her daze.

Lorelai looked up sheepishly. "Sorry." She said. "Just thinking about the girls."

Luke nodded. "Thought so." He said. "By the way...hi." He smiled warmly leaning over the counter to give her a quick kiss.

"Hi." Lorelai smiled softly. Her and Luke had been on a couple more dates since their first time and things were developing nicely.

"So what you thinking right now?" He asked.

"Right now?" She said. "Right now, I'm thinking life is pretty damn good at the moment." She smiled.

Luke smiled. "Yeah it is." He said. "And guess what, things are going to get better."

"How come?"

"Steve's finally finalised on the houses. They're moving back this weekend." He told her.

"That's great! That means they will be here in time for the firelight festival!" Lorelai smiled. "Liv will be thrilled."

"Yeah about that...Steve suggested we leave it a surprise..." Luke said.

"Are you asking me to lie to my kid?" She teased.

"Not lie...just not offer the information to her." Luke smirked slightly. "I know you'd love to see her face when she sees them, right?"

Lorelai grinned. "Ok you've convinced me."

"So how was work?" He asked.

"Urgh...do you think Michel could come and work for you because I don't think I can put up with him for much longer?" She groaned.

"No way." Luke chuckled. "He's all yours!"

* * *

"Aw you promised you would consider coming to Chilton." Olivia said lying on her bed, her cell by her ear.

"No, you begged me to come to Chilton and I told you I'm not as bright as you and Rory." Ben chuckled.

"Yeah but you are! You and Amy both are!" She pouted. "Plus doesn't Amy want to go to the same school as Tristan?"

"Look, even if we wanted to come to the same school as you, dad couldn't afford it. What with the move, he needs to save everything he can at the moment." He said. "Plus someone needs to keep Jess out of mischief."

"Ok fine, not all your points are bad." Olivia conceded. "I just...it would be nice to see you at school when you do move." She said.

"Yeah, it would be nice. But think of it this way, it'll make our time after school and at weekends even more special." Ben smiled.

"That does sound good." Olivia smiled. "So any news on the move yet?" She asked hopefully.

"Not yet." Ben said. "Hey, tell me a Paris anecdote. You haven't told me one in a couple of days now." He said.

* * *

"Seriously? You walked in on them kissing?" Rory exclaimed horrified.

"More than kissing." Jess said.

"Ewww Jess! That's my mum you're talking about!" She exclaimed.

"And he's my uncle! You think I enjoy walking in on them making out?" Jess retorted.

Rory smirked slightly. "Well thankfully, Liv and I haven't had to endure that yet. I think Luke would faint if we ever walked in on him."

"They're gross. They're always with each other, talking all sappy." He grumbled.

"Aw I think it's sweet." Rory smiled. "They're happy. They deserve to be happy." She said.

"I just wish they'd go be happy elsewhere and not somewhere I could walk into." He said.

"Fair point." Rory smirked. "I do think it's sweet though, don't you? They do seem really happy."

"Luke walks round smiling much more than usual. He even hummed the other day. It was creepy. And weird." Jess said.

"And sweet! Admit it, you're happy for him." Rory grinned. She sighed when Jess just gave her a look. "Ok, look at it this way, because they're distracted I bet Luke doesn't nag you as much right?" She pointed out.

"I guess..." Jess said.

"So that's good then right? Win win."

"Well I do know for a fact that the principal called him to inform him that I stole all the school's baseballs. But he hasn't said anything to me..." Jess said smirking slightly.

"What? You stole all the baseballs? Why?" Rory exclaimed.

"Something to do." He shrugged. "School's boring. Everyone there is weird." Jess said.

"Lane isn't weird." She said.

"Lane's the only sane person there but we don't share all the same classes. I need to find something to do to amuse me." He smirked.

"Then why don't you consider transferring to Chilton? Then I could amuse you!" Rory said.

"We've been through this..." Jess said.

"Yeah yeah, Chilton's not for you. But I don't see why it wouldn't be. You're as smart as me and Liv." She said.

"Maybe. But there's no point me going to Chilton. You want to go to Harvard. You need Chilton for that. But you know once I graduate, I'm done." Jess said.

"I don't understand why you won't consider..." Rory tried.

"Rory..." He sighed.

"Ok fine." She conceded. "I get that it's your choice. I do. I just...I want the best for you, Jess. You could do so much."

"And maybe I still will. Luke didn't go to college and he's doing pretty well." Jess said. "I don't need a diploma to be successful."

"I guess you're right." Rory said. She sighed. "I'm sorry I keep getting on at you about it. I just...care about you."

Jess smiled softly. "I care about you as well."

Rory smiled and went to sit closer to him. "I should head home soon..." She said reluctantly.

"Soon isn't now." Jess smirked before leaning in to kiss her. "We've still got time."

* * *

"Missing lover boy?"

Olivia looked up from her locker to see Tristan standing there. "What?"

"There has to be some reason why you've had a long face all week. It's Friday so you should be happy but you're not." He pointed out. "So what's up? Are you missing that Ben guy?"

"Wait, how did you...?" She said surprised.

"I kind of sensed something when we were all hanging out that last time." Tristan said.

"Oh.." She said quietly. "Tristan..."

"It's cool." He chuckled. "I just want you to be happy, you know that."

She smiled softly. "You're a good friend." She said.

"I try." He smirked.

"Seriously though, I never meant to lead you on before." Olivia said.

"I know." He nodded.

"This thing with me and Ben..." She said. "It's early days but I think..."

"You like him?" Tristan said.

"Yeah." She admitted.

"Hence the face all week."

She sighed. "Sorry. I just...our town's having this firelight festival tomorrow. And I thought everything with their move was going well but this week there's just been no news." She sighed. "I really wanted to share the festival with him." She admitted.

"That sucks." Tristan said sympathetically. "So...no news yet huh?" He said.

"You know you could just ask for Amy's number?" Olivia teased.

Tristan blushed slightly. "Busted." He chuckled. "Come on, I'll take you for a coffee. We can wallow together." He smirked.

Olivia laughed. "Deal!" She grinned following them. "Hey Tris?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks." She smiled softly.

* * *

"Why did you need us to come to try and persuade Luke to join us? You know you can persuade him by yourself." Olivia said.

"I know." Lorelai said.

"So why...Oh my god!" Olivia suddenly exclaimed as they walked towards the diner and some familiar figures appeared from inside.

"That's why!" Lorelai grinned.

"I can't believe you!" Olivia exclaimed, hugging Ben. "You said there wasn't any news yet! You lied!" She exclaimed playfully hitting him.

"That's because otherwise this wouldn't have been a surprise. A nice one, I'm hoping?" Ben chuckled.

"The best!" She grinned. "Hey!" She smiled at Amy, giving her a hug as well.

"We were sworn to secrecy, sorry." She said sheepishly.

"I don't care! You're here now! I mean, you're here permanently now right?" Olivia asked.

"Yep." Amy smiled. "Hey Rory!" She said giving her a hug.

"Hey! It's good to see you." Rory smiled. "You knew, didn't you?" She raised her eyebrows at Jess.

"Sworn to secrecy." He smirked.

"Go on, you lot head over to the festival. I'll meet you there in a bit." Lorelai smiled at them all. She grinned as they all went off chatting excitedly. "Ok, that was totally worth it!" She laughed. "How was the drive?" She asked Steve.

"It was fine. Just happy to be here." He smiled. "I'm just going to sort some stuff out at the house but I'll meet you at the festival later?"

"Sounds good!" Lorelai smiled. "We'll catch up later." She said. "Ok so..." She turned to Luke.

"Nope." Luke smirked before heading back into the diner.

* * *

Lorelai walked through the crowds at the festival later that evening. She smiled as she saw the teenagers sat together, still chatting and laughing together. Her smile grew as she spotted a familiar figure on one of the benches. "So you did turn up then." She teased as she sat down next to him.

"Would I have heard the end of it if I hadn't?" Luke said.

"Nope." She grinned. "Still, I can't believe you came! You, Luke Danes! At one of the town's crazy festivals!"

"I can go back to the diner, you know." He said dryly.

"No don't go! I'm sorry." She grinned. She smiled as she leant her head on his shoulder. "This is nice. Hey, did you see Harry and Taylor get into a fist fight?"

"No! How did I miss that?" Luke said.

"It was so good!" Lorelai laughed. She smiled at him softly. "Thanks for coming." She said sincerely.

"Anything for you." He smiled.

Lorelai smiled and gave him a kiss just as a camera flashed. They looked up to see where it came from. Lorelai saw Luke's face go white. "Luke?" She said following his gaze to a curly brown haired woman standing infront of them.

"Rachel..." Luke managed to get out.

"Hey, how's it going?" She smiled warmly at them.

 **So I hope you liked it! :) Please let me know what you think by leaving a review! Thank you so much for all your continued support and I do hope you're still with me! :)**


	17. Chapter 17

**Thank you for all of your support so far! Please do let me know if you're still reading this as I feel this might be losing steam a bit. Let me know if you're still with me. :) Here's the next chapter! :)**

Chapter 17

"Rachel? Wait, that Rachel?" Lorelai said her eyes widening. "Rachel, your childhood sweetheart Rachel? Rachel, the love of your life Rachel? That Rachel?" She said.

"That's me." Rachel said.

"Wow..uh..ok..." Lorelai said glancing at Luke who was still looking stunned. "I..uh..I should leave you two alone. There must be a lot to talk about." She said getting up.

"Lorelai, wait." Luke spoke for the first time.

"I guess I'll catch you later." She said quickly before walking off.

"I hope I didn't interrupt anything..." Rachel said hesitantly.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Luke demanded, turning to her.

* * *

Meanwhile, the teenagers were all having a dance having fun by the bonfire. Ben was dancing with Olivia, Rory was dancing with Jess and Amy was dancing with Lane.

"I'm so happy you're finally here." Olivia grinned at Ben.

"Me too." Ben smiled. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too." She smiled.

"Hey, sorry to interrupt, but I was wondering if we could swap for a dance?" Jess said appearing beside them.

"Sure." Ben said. "One dance though." He smirked.

"Deal." Jess smirked.

"Should I feel honoured that you want to dance with me?" Olivia teased.

"I'm never going to live this down am I?" He chuckled.

"Nope!" She grinned. "So to what do I owe this pleasure?"

"I..uh..well I wanted to make sure we were ok." He admitted.

"What?" She said confused.

"I mean, I know we've moved past everything. All the..uh..awkward stuff. But you're one of my best friends. I need to be sure you're ok with me and Rory because...well...because I really feel like me and her...well, we're doing really good." Jess said hesitantly. "And I know you and Ben are starting something. I just..I don't want things to be awkward. I just wanted to make sure you were really ok."

Olivia smiled softly. "That's really sweet." She said.

"I care about you." He said honestly.

She smiled. "Jess, I'm not going to lie and say my feelings for you have just disappeared because I think that will probably take a long time. Feelings linger, everyone knows that. But I've see you and Rory. You're really happy together and I'm happy for you. Honestly." She said sincerely. "And well...I think...no, I know actually, that I really like Ben. We've got so much in common and he makes me laugh."

"Ok." Jess said.

"We're good, Jess. We always will be." She smiled softly.

"Ok good." He smiled. "I just wanted to make sure. Because I don't think I could lose you."

"You won't." She promised him as the music came to an end. "Hey Jess?" She said.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for checking." Olivia smiled. "Hey, what's going on over there?" She said gesturing over to Luke and her mom who were with another woman.

"Oh my god, that's Rachel!" Jess said surprised.

"Rachel? You mean...?"

"Yup. Luke's ex, Rachel. That Rachel." He nodded. "Geez, she hasn't been here for years!"

"Do you remember her?" She asked.

"Not really. I was young when they were together. She came a few times but then left pretty quickly. When I was older, Luke would get phone calls from her but nothing ever happened from them. She really messed him around." He frowned. "Why is she here?"

"Mom looks freaked..." Olivia said as she saw their mom walking towards them. "Hi mom..." She said hesitantly as she approached them.

"Fancy a walk?" She asked her daughters. "Let's take a walk." She said.

"Uh..sure, ok." Olivia said exchanging a glance with Rory. "We'll..uh..catch you guys later." She told the others as the three of them walked off.

"What was that all about?" Ben asked walking up to Jess.

"It's a long story." Jess said. He frowned as he saw Luke and Rachel walking towards the diner. "I'll be right back." He told him before heading towards the diner.

* * *

"So that woman..." Lorelai as she walked along the pavement.

"Is Rachel." Olivia said.

"What?" She said surprised. "How did you...?"

"Jess told me." Olivia said.

"Oh." Lorelai said.

"Wait, Rachel? The Rachel that...?" Rory said shocked.

"That Luke was going to marry according to the town, yes. The one woman he's been head over heels in love with. Yes, that Rachel." Lorelai said.

"How are you doing?" Olivia asked cautiously.

Lorelai just shrugged. "I mean...Luke loved her. They've known each other for years. She's back so she obviously wants him back. I knew I shouldn't have acted on my feelings. I knew it! I knew it was too good to be true."

"Whoa, slow down, ok?" Olivia said. "Yes, Luke might have loved Rachel. Once. But he's with you, mom. He's known you for years as well. If he was still hung up on Rachel, he would never have gotten with you. He's not like that."

She just shrugged again. "Love can make you do weird things. He was in love with her. And now she's here. His feelings will probably come back. It's only natural."

"Mom, you're being silly. Luke wouldn't do that to you." Rory assured her.

"She's right, mom. Luke isn't like that. He's not dad!" Olivia said.

"What?" She said shocked, looking at them.

Olivia sighed. "You always get hurt by dad. And I feel like you think dad's the norm when it comes to men. But he's not. You're so used to getting hurt by dad that you just assume you'll always get hurt by guys. But Luke's not dad, mom. He's the complete opposite to dad. He's with you because he wants to be with you. And to be honest, he's probably as shook up by this whole situation as you are." She pointed out.

"Why are you two so team Luke?" Lorelai asked glancing at them.

"Luke's been there for us. Not because he wanted you to like him but because he actually cares about us. And he really cares about you, mom. I get why you would be jealous about Rachel..." Olivia said.

"I'm not jealous." Lorelai said quickly.

"You are jealous." Rory said. "But that's natural. Do you think Luke wouldn't be jealous if suddenly dad showed up again while the two of you were dating?"

"Exactly." Olivia said. "But don't...just don't push Luke away yet. Talk to him. Tell him how you feel and you never know, you might just be surprised. I mean you trust him right? You trust Luke?"

Lorelai sighed. "Of course I trust Luke." She said. "I just...this is a lot to take in. The whole town has gone on about how Rachel was meant to be the one for him. How they all thought they were going to get married..."

"Yeah meant to be the one." Rory said. "They have thought you're the one for him for years now!"

"What?" She said surprised.

"Oh come on, mom. Ever since you two met, the town have been talking. You must have heard them." Olivia said. "Yes, maybe once it looked like Rachel might have been the one for Luke but that's in the past. He chose you, mom. So please, don't throw it all away because you think he's going to choose Rachel. Give him a chance to talk. Go be honest with him and see what he says. Don't just...give up." She said.

"She's right, mom. This is the happiest we've seen you ever. And we're pretty sure that's down to Luke. Talk to him." Rory said.

Lorelai sighed and glanced at her daughters. "You're right." She admitted. "I should tell him how I'm feeling." She sighed. "Thanks." She said softly.

* * *

Jess went to the diner and up to the apartment and was shocked to see Rachel unpacking her bag. "You've got to be kidding me..." He said.

"Jess..." Luke said surprised.

"You can't seriously be falling for it again? You're letting her stay here?" Jess exclaimed.

"It's not like that." Luke said.

"Oh really? Because to me, it looks like you're letting your ex stay with you. An ex that has broken your heart numerous times before! What about Lorelai, huh? Don't you care that she's upset? Don't you care that she's freaking out right this moment?" He said angrily.

"Jess, I..." Rachel tried.

"No, don't you dare! You don't get to talk!" Jess snapped.

"Jess!" Luke frowned.

"I knew life was going too well for me. I knew it! I knew it would get screwed up at some point but I never thought it would be because of one of your decisions." Jess said angrily. "I can't believe you! This woman broke your heart so many times I can't remember and you finally moved on and now you're screwing it up again! Lorelai is the best thing that ever happened to you and you're throwing it away because your ex decided to come back to visit for god knows how long. How long will it be for this time, Rachel? Two days? A week?"

"Hey, don't talk to her like that." Luke frowned.

"Jess, I promise you..." Rachel tried.

"No! I trusted you! You took me on when you didn't need you and you gave me a life Liz should have given me. You actually gave me a good childhood. I'm happy for the first time ever. I'm really happy! Does that mean nothing to you? Lorelai's been like a mom to me and now you're just going to break her heart like Rachel broke yours! That really sucks! And then Rory and Olivia will be on their mom's side and I'll have to be on your side because you're family and everything will be screwed up between me and Rory as well. Why? Why would you screw everything up? Why?" He exclaimed.

"Jess..." Luke said stunned.

Jess just shook her head. "I thought you were different." He said quietly. "You were the first person in my life that I trusted, the first person I actually looked up to but...but you're just like every other man in the world. I should have known." He said. "I should have known."

"Jess!" Luke called after him as he watched him walk out. "Rachel, I..."

"Go." Rachel told him. "Go talk to him." She said.

* * *

"So you think everything is going to be ok?" Ben asked Olivia as they sat in the square with Rory and Amy.

"I hope so." She sighed. "Nothing like some drama on your first day here, huh?"

Ben smiled slightly. "I guess you're always going to get some drama in a small town like this."

"Oh yeah." Olivia nodded.

"Did Jess say where he was going?" Rory asked.

"Nope, but it looked like he was headed towards the diner. That was like an hour ago now though." Ben frowned.

"Oh." Rory frowned. "I hope he's ok..."

"I'm sure he is. He's probably just trying to talk sense into Luke as well like we did with mom." Olivia assured her.

"Yeah...probably." Rory said. "I guess he'll show up soon."

"Of course he will." Amy smiled. "He probably won't want to be around when your mom and Luke talk."

"And make up." Ben smirked.

"Eww, seriously?" Olivia exclaimed playfully hitting him.

"Just speaking the truth." He grinned.

"Well stop! That's our mom!" She said.

"Sorry." He smirked.

* * *

Luke finally spotted a familiar figure sat on the bridge looking out at the water. He slowly walked up to him. "Mind if I sit?" He asked.

"It's a free country." Jess mumbled, smoking a cigarette.

"Hey, I thought you stopped that last year?" Luke frowned.

"I needed one." He said.

Luke sighed and sat down next to him, dangling his legs over the side. "You were right." He said.

"What?" Jess said, glancing at him.

"Everything you said, you were right. I wasn't thinking about how you would feel and that was wrong." Luke said.

"I don't care about myself. I care about..."

"Lorelai, yeah I know. You made that pretty obvious." He said. "She's been like a mom to you, huh?" He said softly, glancing at him.

Jess ducked his head slightly. "She's the only mother figure I've had. She's always looked out for me. Isn't that what a mom does?" He mumbled.

"Yeah. She's great." Luke said softly. He sighed. "Rachel's dad is sick." He told him.

"What?" Jess said surprised.

"Her dad's not doing so good. That's why she's back and that's why I offered her somewhere to stay. She doesn't want to burden her mom by staying at their house. Besides, her mom is at the hospital all the time anyway." Luke said. "She said she just wanted to see me because...well, I knew her parents. And she knew...well, she knew that I would know what she was going through." He said quietly. "But you were right. I shouldn't have let her stay at the apartment."

Jess sighed. "It sucks that her dad's sick. But there must be somewhere she can stay that's not...here." He said. "I'm not trying to be harsh, I just..."

"No, you're right. I wasn't thinking about you and I definitely wasn't thinking about Lorelai." Luke said. "I thought I was doing the right thing. I've always just wanted to do the right thing." He said before sighing. "Look Jess, I will always care about Rachel. Feelings like that won't just go away." He told him.

Jess thought back to what Olivia had told him. "I guess..." He said.

"But I love Lorelai." Luke told him. "I will always care about Rachel but me and her, that's very much in the past. Lorelai's who I want to be with, not Rachel."

"You mean that?" Jess said quietly, glancing at him.

"You were wrong when you said Lorelai was the best thing that ever happened to me." Luke said.

"What?" He said confused.

"I mean, she comes a very close second but top of that list has always been you." He said sincerely. "And I hate that you think I would want to screw that up. You're the most important person to me and I would never want to upset you."

Jess ducked his head. "I...I shouldn't have said what I did. You're not like every other guy. I just...I was angry and I could just see everything..."

"Falling apart?" Luke guessed. He saw Jess nod slightly. "Yeah, I know the feeling." He said. He glanced at him. "I've been trying to look for you this whole time but I couldn't so I went back to the apartment and Rachel and I talked. Like we really talked. And I told her that she couldn't stay at the apartment. Obviously I empathise with her, what she's going through. Her dad...he's a decent guy. He was always good to me. But you were right. It would be too weird having her here, especially when I want things to work between me and Lorelai." He said. "She understood and she apologised to me. For...everything. For leaving, for...leading me on only to leave yet again. Many times."

"Really?" Jess said surprised.

"We've both grown up a lot. It was nice to finally have some closure on everything. She told me she could see things between Lorelai and I were real and she didn't want to mess that up." Luke said. "So...she packed her bags and booked herself into a hotel. So..."

"She's gone?" Jess said glancing at him.

"She's gone." He nodded.

Jess sighed. "I'm sorry." He said quietly.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. You were...trying to protect me." Luke said.

Jess glanced at him. "I just...I've seen how you've been when she's called you, promising to come and see you. And when she does, she stays for like a day and two and then leaves. And then you're left broken again. And then she kept calling you, giving you false hope. It wasn't fair on you."

"I know. I realise that now." Luke said. "But you know what changed that?"

"What?"

"Lorelai." He smiled softly. "She made me feel happy again. I mean, obviously I thought she was way out of my league. I mean, why on earth would someone like her even look at me twice right? But then when she came and kissed me that day. It was one of the best days of my life. I...I love her." He admitted.

"Have you told her that?" Jess asked.

"What, that I love her?" Luke said. "No, not yet." He admitted.

"You should." Jess said. "She'd like to hear that. She'd probably like to hear everything you just told me."

"Yeah. I guess I should go find her, huh?"

"If you don't, I definitely will kick your ass." Jess said smirking slightly.

Luke chuckled slightly. "I have no doubt you would as well." He said getting up. "Come on, I'll walk you back to the square. Everyone's probably wondering where you are."

"Luke?" Jess said, getting up.

"Yeah?"

"Lorelai isn't out of your league. She's lucky to have you as much as you're lucky to have her. You..uh..you shouldn't put yourself down so much." Jess said awkwardly.

Luke smiled softly. "Thanks." He said. "We're good, right?"

Jess smiled. "We're good." He said.

They then walked back towards the square. As they were walking back towards the bonfire, they saw Lorelai sat on the step infront of the diner. "I..uh..I'll catch you later ok?" Luke told Jess.

"Ok." Jess nodded. "Hey Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't mess it up." He said smirking slightly.

Luke chuckled. "I'll try not to." He said, smiling as he watched Jess walk towards where Ben, Amy, Rory and Olivia were. He took a deep breath before turning towards the diner and walking towards Lorelai. "Hey.." He said nervously.

"Hey.." She said quietly.

"Do you..uh..do you want to come up to the apartment?" He asked.

"Wouldn't that be awkward? I mean, Rachel..." Lorelai said hesitantly.

"Is gone." Luke said.

"What?" She said surprised.

"She's gone." Luke repeated. "And I'd really like you to come up with me so I can make it up to you for dealing with this so badly. That's if...well, if you still want anything to do with me?" He said nervously.

Lorelai smiled softly. "Lead the way." She said.

 **So I hope you liked it! :) Please do let me know what you think. I really do enjoy reading all of your reviews so thank you! And thank you for your continued support so far. I really do appreciate it! :)**


	18. Chapter 18

**Thank you for your continued support! Here's the next chapter! :)**

Chapter 18

"I didn't know Rachel was going to show up like she did." Luke said as he and Lorelai went into the apartment.

"I know." Lorelai said.

"You do?" He said surprised.

"Well anyone who knew their ex was going to show up but didn't tell their girlfriend about it wouldn't be the nicest person and I know you're not like that." She shrugged.

"I handled it all wrong though and I'm sorry. She told me her dad was sick and I just immediately offered her to stay here. I didn't even think about what that would mean. I just thought it was the right thing to do but I realised how inappropriate it would be on you. And I'm really sorry about that. I wasn't even thinking. I'm an idiot." Luke sighed.

"No, Luke, you're not an idiot." Lorelai said softly. "You're just...you."

"What does that mean?" He said confused.

"That's just who you are, Luke. Always trying to do right by everyone. You put everyone first." She explained.

"And that's a...bad thing?" He said still confused.

"No." She smiled. "It's a really good thing. I was the one who overreacted." She said.

"I still should have thought about what I was doing. I mean, of course Rachel showing up and me offering her to stay was going to upset you. Jess pretty much shouted some sense into me." Luke said.

"He did?" Lorelai said surprised.

"Oh yeah!" He chuckled. "Trust me, he's very much team Lorelai."

"And Liv and Rory are very much team Luke." Lorelai laughed slightly. "Seems like the kids wee being the grown ups in this case, huh?"

"I guess so." He smirked slightly.

"I'm sorry Rachel's dad's sick. That sucks." Lorelai said.

"Yeah he's a good guy. Was good friends with my dad." Luke nodded.

"So...where's she gone?" She asked.

"To a hotel. I'm not sure which one. We had a talk and she said she didn't want to mess anything between you and me. I really hope me being stupid didn't ruin things between us, Lorelai." He said. "Rachel is in the past, I swear. I want to be with you. I...I love you." He said nervously.

"You...what?" She said stunned.

"Oh geez, it was too early for stuff like that wasn't it?" Luke cringed, starting to pace around. "I'm sorry. I just thought...I've definitely ruined things now haven't I? I've scared you away now, haven't I?"

"Luke..." Lorelai said.

"I just thought I could prove to you that you're the one I want, not Rachel. But I went too far." He said.

"Luke!" She tried again.

"It's far too early for declarations like that. Of course it is! I'm an idiot!" Luke exclaimed.

"Luke!" Lorelai exclaimed.

"What?" Luke said turning to her.

"I love you too." Lorelai smiled softly before going forward and kissing him. "This is all I've ever wanted. The full package. You, me, the girls, Jess. I don't want any of this to end." She admitted.

"Then it doesn't have to. If you can forgive me for..."

"You're already forgiven." She interrupted him.

"Really?"

"I get it. I get why you did what you did. I overreacted when I saw Rachel but I trust you, Luke." She said. "I want to be with you."

"And I want to be with you." Luke said relieved. He kissed her again before smiling softly. "I love you."

"I love you too." Lorelai smiled softly.

* * *

"So this was a fun first evening but we should get home and help dad with the rest of the unpacking." Amy said as they finished a movie at the Crap Shack.

"Yeah ok. It was great seeing you." Rory smiled.

"You too!" Amy smiled. "Come on you. Stop making googly eyes at Olivia." She teased Ben.

"I wasn't!" Ben said.

"So you were just watching her watch the movie then, huh?" She teased.

"Shut up." He mumbled blushing.

"I think it's sweet." Olivia grinned.

"You would." Rory teased.

"Oh and you and Jess weren't doing the same thing huh?" Olivia said.

"Hey, leave me out of this." Jess smirked.

"Amy's right though. We better head home." Ben said getting up.

"See you tomorrow?" Olivia asked getting up with them.

"You can count on it." Ben smiled before giving her a quick kiss. "Let's go." He smiled at Amy.

"Wait!" Olivia said, getting something out of her pocket. "Tristan told me to give this to you when you came. I think someone's eager to get in touch." She teased.

It was Amy's turn to blush this time. "Thanks." She said. "See you guy tomorrow." She said.

"Bye!" Olivia smiled.

"Yeah see you tomorrow." Rory smiled.

"See ya." Jess said.

"So what now?" Olivia asked.

"Well I'm staying here seeing as your mom hasn't returned and that probably means her and Luke have sorted things out." Jess said.

"So another movie?" Rory grinned.

"Another movie." Olivia grinned.

"So long as it's not Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I'm up for it." Jess said. He saw them both exchange grins. "Oh geez..." He groaned.

* * *

Jess woke up the following morning and for a moment, it took him a minute to realise where he was. He smiled when he realised he was in the living room at the Crap Shack and both Rory and Olivia were leaning against him, still asleep. He heard movement coming from the kitchen so he carefully and gently moved Olivia and Rory off him before getting up and wandering into the kitchen where Lorelai was making coffee. "So I'm guessing we fell asleep..." He said.

"Yep. I came in and you were all passed out on the couch. Thought it would be mean to wake you so I just put a blanket over you all." Lorelai smiled. "Don't worry, I let Luke know you were here."

"I wasn't worried." He smirked.

"Of course you weren't." She smirked. "But Luke would have been. Coffee?" She asked.

"I'd rather not kill myself thanks." He smirked.

"You're too much like Luke." She said.

"He'll be pleased to hear that." Jess said dryly.

"So...I hear you went off on Luke a bit yesterday..." Lorelai said.

Jess ducked his head slightly. "He told you about that?"

"Just that you shouted some sense into him and that apparently you were all team Lorelai." She said.

"Yeah..well..." He said awkwardly.

"Hey..." She said softly, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Thanks." He smiled.

Jess glanced at her. "I didn't do much. I just...didn't like how he was handling things. I didn't want him to screw things up with you."

"That's really sweet. I appreciate it. Really." She smiled softly.

Jess just nodded. "It's nothing." He said. "So you two...are good?"

"We're good." Lorelai smiled.

"Good." He nodded just as the doorbell went.

"I'll get it!" Olivia called from the other room.

"Ooh looks like the girls are awake. I have to head to work but have fun." She smiled.

Meanwhile, Olivia opened the door to find Ben stood there in some smart trousers and a shirt and holding a bunch of flowers. "Hey, what's this?" She asked.

"I'm taking you out on our first date." He said.

"What?" She beamed.

"We haven't managed to have one yet. I was thinking lunch at Luke's and then maybe heading to that music store in town to buy some records and then we can play them on the record player back at mine. What do you think?" He asked.

"I think you're on!" Olivia grinned. "Just let me get changed first."

"Sure." He said. "And these are for you." He said giving her the flowers.

"Aw that's so sweet! You bought me flowers?"

"That's what you do on a first date, isn't it?" Ben smiled.

"They're so pretty. Thanks!" Olivia smiled softly. "Hey mom, look what Ben got me!" She said as Lorelai grabbed her jacket from the peg, heading out.

"Aw they're lovely. Hi Ben." She smiled warmly.

"Hi." Ben smiled.

"You guys have fun today. I'm heading to the inn. Meet up for dinner?" Lorelai asked.

"Sounds good." Olivia nodded. "Bye mom. Don't wind Michel up too much."

"As if I would." Lorelai grinned before heading out.

* * *

"It was sweet of Ben to plan a first date for Olivia. She was so excited." Rory smiled as she sat down next to Jess on the couch in the living room.

"Yeah, they seem happy together." He nodded.

"Yeah they do. I'm glad." Rory smiled. "I'm glad Liv's happy. She deserves it."

"Yeah she does." Jess smiled. He glanced at her. "I had a talk with her yesterday to check she was ok with everything. With us."

"That's sweet." Rory smiled. "What did she say?"

"She said she was. I just wanted to make sure things wouldn't be awkward. I know her and Ben are starting something but I also realised we were doing well and I wanted to make sure she was ok with that before." Jess admitted. "We are doing ok, aren't we?" He checked.

Rory smiled and leant over, kissing him. "Does that answer your question?"

"Absolutely." He smirked, reciprocating the action. "I still can't believe you gave me a shot."

"Aw Jess, you know how much you mean to me." Rory said softly. "I'm just happy I realised just how much you meant to me before someone else snapped you up." She joked.

"I wouldn't look at anyone else." Jess said.

"And neither would I." Rory smiled. "So what do you fancy doing? Going out or staying in?"

Jess smirked and leant forward, kissing her again. "I think staying in."

Rory laughed. "Staying in it is then!"

"And we've got the whole house to ourselves." He grinned.

"Oh what could we possibly do?" She grinned.

* * *

"I'm still jealous that you have a record player. You can listen to records anytime you want." Olivia said as she was sat on the floor with Ben in his bedroom.

"You know you can borrow it anytime." He said.

"I know. But it's not the same." Olivia said. "But I am glad you're here now. It means I can listen to my records so much more regularly." She grinned.

"Ah I see! You're not glad I'm here because you've missed me. It's because you've missed my record player." Ben teased.

"Maybe." She teased. "Nah, life was boring without you." She added, smiling at him.

"I'm glad you think that. Life was pretty boring in New York as well." Ben said. "So, what are your opinions of the first date? Would you maybe want a second one?" He asked.

Olivia smiled, leaning forward to give him a quick, sweet kiss. "I think a second date is very much on the horizon." She said softly.

"Yeah?" Ben smiled.

"Definitely." She said. "You know it's weird...With everything that happened with me and Jess and my feelings and then with Tristan, I thought it would take me age to sort my head out but then...well, you showed up."

"And I took your breath away?" He joked.

Olivia laughed. "Pretty much. We just clicked so quickly and I don't know...I just felt so comfortable around you." She admitted.

"Yeah, I pretty much felt the same." Ben admitted.

"I know we're taking things slow but I really am glad you're here now. Because I really have missed you." She said softly.

"Me too." Ben smiled. "Hey, stand up for a moment." He said pulling her up.

"Why?" She said. "What are you doing?" She laughed as he got down on one knee.

"I'm doing this properly." He grinned, taking her hand. "Olivia Gilmore?"

"Yeah?" She laughed.

"Will you do me the absolute honour of becoming my official girlfriend?" Ben grinned.

Olivia beamed and pulled him up. "Of course I will." She laughed before pulling him towards her and kissing him again. "You're sweet." She smiled.

"I try." He smirked.

"Do you want to come back to mine for dinner? Mom won't mind. To be honest, we'll probably get take out anyway. And Jess will probably be there as well." Olivia said.

"Sure." He nodded. "If you're sure your mom won't mind?"

"Nah she won't." She smiled.

"Lead the way then." Ben smiled.

 **So I hope you liked it! Sorry it's a bit shorter but I wanted to get something up for you as I'm not sure how busy the week will be for me so I'm not sure when I will update next. :) Please keep reviewing as I love reading what you all think. Thanks again for all your support! It really does mean so much to me. :)**


	19. Chapter 19

**Thank you for all your support so far! Hope you enjoy this next chapter! :)**

Chapter 19

A few weeks had passed and the teenagers were coming to the end of their school year.

"So your mom's taking Rory to Harvard this weekend for a tour?" Ben asked as he and Olivia were sat at a table in Luke's.

"Yep. Rory's so excited." Olivia nodded.

"You didn't want to go?" He questioned.

"Nah, it's not my dream, it's Rory's." She said.

"And what's your dream then?" Ben asked interested.

"I don't really know yet. I feel like I'd quite like to do something to do with music but I don't know what yet." Olivia admitted.

"Sounds cool." Ben smiled.

"Hey!" Rory said appearing beside the table and sitting down with them, Jess following her.

"Oh hey!" Olivia smiled.

"So double date tonight seeing as I'm going to Harvard tomorrow? We could just hang out at the house and watch some movies and get takeout. And then we could make it into a slumber party." Rory suggested.

"Sounds good." Olivia said. "What about mom though?"

"She's going to Luke's tonight. And staying the night." Jess said. "I do not want to be in that apartment tonight." He said smirking slightly.

"Ok eww!" Olivia said screwing up her face. She glanced at Rory. "Have you run this past mom? Does she know the guys will be staying over?" She said slightly surprised that she would agree to them having their boyfriends stay over especially when she wasn't there.

"She said so long as we all sleep in the living room on mattresses, it's fine." Rory said.

"So she doesn't trust us then." She smirked slightly.

"Exactly." Rory smirked. "But she is letting them stay over so that's something. It could be fun."

"Yeah sounds good. You up for it?" Olivia asked Ben.

"Definitely." Ben nodded.

"Then we're in." She grinned at her sister.

"Cool! Now give me some of your fries." Rory grinned stealing some fries off her plate.

* * *

"Hey, so when are the boys arriving?" Lorelai asked coming down the stairs in a nice dress where Rory and Olivia was sat on the couch waiting.

"Anytime now." Rory said.

"You look nice." Olivia smiled.

"Thanks." She grinned. She was quiet for a moment before sitting down next to them. "Ok, so I need to talk to you about something..."

"Oh no, this isn't that talk, is it?" Olivia cringed.

"This will be as hard for me as it is for you." Lorelai said.

"I doubt it." Rory said.

Lorelai sighed. "Look, I just want you two to be careful ok? You've got such bright futures ahead of you. I don't want to be that sort of mom who locks their kids up so they can't see boys. Now I'm not by any means saying I regret having the two of you because you're the best thing that ever happened to me but I didn't get to go to college." She said. "Just...I want you to be sensible...and safe."

"We promise, mom." Rory said.

"Yeah you can trust us." Olivia assured her. "Besides, I'm not ready for that yet."

"Me neither." Rory added.

Lorelai let out a breath. "Ok." She said slightly relieved. "Well...I'll leave you girls to it then. I'll see you in the morning."

"Yeah, see you in the morning."

Lorelai left the house just as Jess and Ben were walking towards it. "I'm trusting you two, ok? Any funny business and I'll be after you." She told them.

"You know where I live, yeah I know." Jess smirked.

"I'm being serious." Lorelai said.

"We're just going to hang out and watch movies. Nothing's going to happen. I give you my word." Ben assured her.

"Good." Lorelai said. "And you?" She raised her eyebrows at Jess. "Remember, I know your uncle." She said, her mouth twitching a little bit.

Jess smirked slightly. He looked at her for a moment. "You have my word as well." He told her.

"Good. Thank you." She gave them both a smile. "Have fun."

* * *

"This was amazing. Why didn't you tell me you could cook fancy food like this?" Lorelai said later that evening as she sat with Luke in their apartment.

"Because then you would have insisted that I cook this at the diner and with that pout you do and hair flip, you probably could." Luke said.

"The hair flip's that effective huh?" She grinned.

"Combine that with your black dress and you could probably get me to do anything." He smirked slightly.

"Good to know." She laughed.

"So...you're sure you want to spend the night? You don't want to get back to the girls? You know...to...check on them all?" Luke said.

"Do you want me to leave?" She asked.

"No!" He said quickly. "I just...You're ok with them spending the night with their boyfriends? I mean I know one of them is Jess but still...Anything could happen."

"A bit like between us two then." Lorelai teased.

"That's different." Luke said but smiled slightly.

"I trust them." Lorelai told them. "And I trust the boys. They're good kids. They're sensible."

Luke nodded. "And how about you? Are you...sensible?" He asked hesitantly.

"Luke, are you asking me whether I would like you to have your way with me tonight?" She teased, her eyes twinkling.

"No! No, of course not! I just..uh..." Luke said, coughing slightly to try and ease the awkwardness.

"Luke, I'm just teasing." Lorelai smiled softly. She sighed. "You have no idea how much I would love to. But I just had this conversation with the girls. Wouldn't it be hypocritical for me to then act the exact opposite than what I had told them?"

"No because they're not going to have this sort of fun for hopefully twenty years yet." Luke said.

Lorelai laughed slightly. "I think it will probably be a lot sooner than then." She said.

"What? You think they will...?"

"Not yet." Lorelai said. "But at some point."

"And you're not worried?"

"Of course I am!" She said. "But I knew it was going to happen at some point. They know the risks and I know they're both looking to their future. I'm just going to have to trust them."

Luke smiled. "You know, we can just watch some tv tonight if you want. I don't mind."

"It's not that I don't want to. It's just..." Lorelai sighed. "I've found it hard to trust men over the years. Sure I've been on a few dates but they've never got further than a meal out seeing as they normally all did a runner once I told them I had two young daughters." She admitted.

"They're jerks." Luke said.

"I know." She sighed. "I just...with you, it's different. You didn't judge me at all. You've just been...you. You've been amazing and I really don't want to screw this up." She admitted.

"I don't want to screw it up either." Luke assured her. "And I definitely don't want to force you into anything. I would never do that and I'm sorry if you thought this night meant that I wanted to...you know."

"No! No, Luke, I didn't think that. Honestly I didn't." She assured him.

"Look, why don't we watch some tv or one of those movies you seem to love and then I'll sleep on the couch and you can take the bed?" Luke suggested.

"You wouldn't mind?" Lorelai asked.

"So long as I get to spend this evening with you, I don't care what we do." He smiled.

Lorelai smiled softly at him. "Ok." She said. "But before we do all that, why don't we move over to your bed?"

"What?" He said surprised. "I thought..."

"You just showed me why I love you. You're so thoughtful and kind and I...I just feel so lucky to have you in my life." She said softly.

"But I don't want to force you..."

"You could never force me into anything." She assured him. "I love you and you've just proved me why I do. We've got the night to ourselves. Let's make the most of it." She said, taking his hand.

"You're sure?" Luke checked again.

"More sure than I've ever been before." Lorelai smiled, kissing him gently before slowly moving towards his bed. "I love you."

"I love you too." He smiled softly.

* * *

"You're kidding? Mom really told you guys no funny business?" Rory said as the four of them snuggled on the couch.

"Yup." Jess said. "I get why but seeing as to what they will probably be getting up to tonight, it is a bit hypocritical." He smirked.

"Eww! Will you stop?" Olivia exclaimed.

"Sorry." He smirked.

"You think they would?" Rory asked.

"Oh yeah, it's a given." Jess said.

"They don't normally get the night together so...think about it." Olivia said.

"I'd rather not." Rory screwed up her nose.

"You guys are cool with your mom and Luke though, right?" Ben asked.

"Of course. We love Luke!" Olivia said.

"Yep but we'd rather not think about what he will be doing with our mom right this moment." Rory said.

"Then let's watch this last movie." Jess smirked. "You want more popcorn?" He asked.

"Of course!" Olivia grinned.

"I'll come help you." Ben chuckled, getting up. "Don't worry about helping." He smirked at them.

"We have them well trained." Rory grinned at Olivia.

"Don't we just!" She grinned back.

* * *

"So...any regrets?" Luke asked as he lay next to Lorelai later that night.

"None whatsoever." She smiled. "You?"

"Are you kidding? I've been waiting for this since the day I met you." He chuckled.

"What?" She laughed.

"Do you remember that horoscope you gave me the first day we met?" He asked.

"Uh...should I?" Lorelai asked, feeling guilty.

"You came bursting into the diner in a caffeine frenzy and begged me for coffee. I told you no and to sit down until I was finished with other customers. But did you do that?" He said.

"Seeing as I'm such a delightful person, I'd say yes." She grinned.

"You grabbed a horoscope section from a newspaper and hassled me until I told you when my birthday was. You then handed over a piece of paper with my horoscope on except that you had written on it that I would meet an annoying woman today and if I gave her coffee, she would go away." He smirked slightly.

"But she didn't go away." Lorelai smiled.

"Nope. She told me to hang onto that horoscope and one day it may bring me luck." He said. He reached over to his wallet which was on his bedside table and took a piece of paper out of it. "Here." He smiled at her.

"Wow...I'd do anything for a cup of coffee." She laughed slightly. She glanced at him. "You kept this? You kept this in your wallet?" She said softly.

"10 years." He smiled.

"10 years..." She said quietly. She smiled softly at him. "I can't believe you kept this."

"You told me it would bring me luck." He shrugged. He smiled at her. "I guess it did. Eventually."

Lorelai laughed. "God I love you." She said pulling him in for another kiss. "You are an incredibly sweet guy, Luke Danes."

"And you are an incredibly crazy lady, Lorelai Gilmore." Luke smirked slightly. "But you're amazing. And I can't quite believe this is happening."

"Well believe it, because I can predict this will be happening for a long time to come. Because I'll be damned if I let you slip through the net." She smiled.

"I'm all in if you are." He smiled softly.

"I am definitely all in as well." She smiled.

* * *

Lorelai walked out of the ladies' room the following day at Harvard and headed off to meet up with Rory. She stopped to stare at the wall of class valedictorians for a moment before she suddenly heard her daughter's voice coming from one of the classrooms. She walked over to the classroom and peeked her head round and she smiled as she watched Rory take part in one of the discussions.

"That's an interesting point, Professor, but I'm not sure I agree with it." She was saying. "That's because stoicism was not about giving up things, of money and luxuries and stuff."

"That's right. By the time he was in his early forties, Seneca had earned enough money to acquire villas, farms, he ate well, he loved expensive furniture but he didn't consider that a non-philosophical way to live." The professor said.

"It's all kind of relative though." Rory said.

"Oh, here we go." Another student said.

"What?" Rory said.

"We can't get through a class without debating relativism." The student chuckled.

"I just meant that luxury to some is not necessarily luxury to others." Rory said.

"A better subject for another time." The professor said.

"Oh sorry." Rory said.

"No, no, your point is well taken but it's different than the matter at hand. What we're talking about is Seneca's choosing the better more comfortable of two options while remaining a stoic." The professor smiled.

At this point, Lorelai saw Rory turn round and grin at her which she returned before she got up quietly and snuck back up to her.

"Did you see me?" Rory exclaimed as they were finally heading home.

"Yes." Lorelai nodded.

"I was in college!" She beamed.

"It was amazing!" She smiled proudly at her.

"Did I look like I belonged?" Rory asked.

"Completely. You're a natural." Lorelai smiled.

"I can't even believe how it happened. I just sort of got swept up and then the teacher asked a question, and before I knew it..." Rory said excitedly.

"You were blowing them away."

"Well, I don't know if I was blowing them away but suddenly I was talking and I couldn't stop."

"I know that feeling." Lorelai joked.

"College is going to be amazing. I can't wait. I love college. I love Harvard. I love fatalism!" She beamed at her mom before looking at the road ahead of them and suddenly her beam vanished. "MOM, LOOK OUT!" She screamed.

* * *

Luke was wiping the counter down later that afternoon, casually glancing up to look through the window to see if he could spot Lorelai yet. She had promised she would drop by once she and Rory were back from Harvard. He knew it was pathetic but he couldn't wait to see her again. The evening before had been amazing and he realised how happy he really was for once. He smiled slightly to himself as he thought about how many nights like that they could have in the future but suddenly his smile vanished as he heard the bells on the diner door ring and he looked up to see a panic stricken Olivia who had tears running down her face. "Olivia? What's wrong?" He said, his heart dropping.

"It's mom and Rory! I just had a call from a nurse at a Hartford Hospital." She said tremulously. "They...they've been in a car accident..." She managed to get out.

 **So some drama at the end there! I hope you liked it as I was really nervous writing this chapter! Please keep the reviews coming as I love reading what you all think! Thanks again for all your support. It really does mean so much to me. :)**


	20. Chapter 20

**I'm glad you enjoyed the twist! :) Here's the next chapter!**

Chapter 20

"What?" Luke said shocked, his heart dropping.

"They've been in a car accident and I don't know what to do. The nurse wouldn't say anything, just to come to the hospital quickly. That can't be good, right?" Olivia cried. "I don't know what to...I don't know what to do!"

"Ok, everybody out!" Luke shouted. "The diner is closed!" He was relieved when nobody complained and just left. "Come on, I'll drive." He told Olivia. "Jess!" He called upstairs. "Jess!"

"What?" Jess said appearing from upstairs.

"We need to go to the hospital." Luke told him.

"What, why?" He said.

Luke took a deep breath. "It's Lorelai and Rory. They've been in a car accident." He said softly.

"What?" Jess said his eyes widening. "Are they ok?"

"I don't know." Olivia sniffed.

"Come on, let's go." Luke said.

* * *

"It must be bad right? I mean, why did the nurse call me and not one of them? Surely that means they can't? Which means it's bad! Right?" Olivia said tremulously as she sat in the middle seat of the truck.

"Olivia..." Luke said.

"It's true though! If they were fine, they'd ring me! I know they would!" Olivia said. "I just..."

"They'll be fine." Luke tried to reassure her.

"What if they're not though? What if this was really bad? What if they're already dead?!" Olivia exclaimed, tears streaming down her face.

"Liv..." Jess said quietly.

Olivia glanced at Jess who gestured towards Luke. She looked over at him and saw the expression on his face. "I'm sorry." She said quietly. "I just...I can't stop thinking about the worst case scenario. I wish I just knew what had happened."

Luke took a deep breath and glanced at her. "It's ok." He assured her. He was quiet for a moment. "Look...if the...worst case scenario...does happen..." He said. "You'll always have me, ok? You won't be alone." He said softly.

Olivia looked at him and gave him a small tremulous smile. "Thanks." She said quietly.

"But it won't come to that. Your mom and Rory are tough. They'll be fine." Luke gave her a small smile.

"Right." She said quietly.

They arrived at the hospital and rushed in. "Please can you help me? I'm looking for my mom and sister! They were brought here. They were in a car accident." Olivia asked desperately.

"Names?" The receptionist asked.

"Lorelai and Rory Gilmore." Olivia said as she glanced at Luke worriedly.

The receptionist typed the names into her computer. "I'm afraid they're both in surgery at the moment but I'll let the doctor know you're here and I'll get him to let you know when there is any news." She said.

"Surgery? What do you mean they're in surgery?" Olivia said worried.

"That's all I know. I'm sorry." She smiled sympathetically at her.

"Come on, let's go sit and wait." Luke told her. "There's nothing we can do right now."

Olivia blinked back tears but nodded. As they turned the corner, she suddenly heard familiar voices.

"I demand you tell me where my daughter and granddaughter are right now or I won't be responsible for my actions!" Emily was saying. "You know we paid for half of this hospital right?"

"Grandma?" She said as she saw her grandparents arguing with another receptionist.

"Olivia! Do you know anything?" Richard asked.

"I know as much as you do." Olivia said. "Which is basically that they're in surgery but I don't know anything else."

"Who are you?" Emily asked looking at Luke and Jess.

"Luke Danes, Mrs Gilmore. I..uh..I own the diner in Stars Hollow. And this is my nephew, Jess." He said formally.

"Well we can take it from here. You can go now." Emily said stiffly.

"No way." Jess spoke for the first time.

"Jess..." Luke warned.

"What? Just because we know they won't approve of us, that means we're just going to go home and not find out how Lorelai and Rory are? No way! There's no way I'm leaving until I know my girlfriend's going to be ok!" Jess exclaimed.

"Girlfriend?" Emily said shocked.

"Yes, girlfriend!" Jess glared at her. "And for your information, Luke is dating your daughter as well. So I'm sorry you obviously don't like us but we're not going anywhere." He said. "We still need to talk about where Olivia's going to stay. This accident...it's obviously serious and Lorelai wouldn't want her staying at the house herself so where's she going to stay?"

"Well she will obviously stay with us." Emily said.

"Sure, or she can stay in her own town with all her friends during this hard time." Jess retorted.

"We are her family!" Emily exclaimed.

"Look, maybe we should just calm down a bit. We don't know how serious this was yet. Lorelai and Rory may be perfectly fine. This might just be precaution." Luke said.

"Surgery is precaution? Nice to know you're taking this seriously. You obviously don't have real feelings for our daughter then." Emily snapped.

"Emily..." Richard said.

"Real feelings?" Luke said astonished. "I've known your daughter for years! I've loved her for ten years! I would swap positions with her and Rory in a heartbeat if I could. So don't tell me how I feel." He said getting angry.

"Amen." Jess grumbled.

"I'm sick of this. This is a family matter and you two are not family so I'd like you to leave. Or should I call security?" Emily said.

"Shut up! Please will you all just SHUT UP!" Olivia suddenly shouted.

"Olivia!" Emily exclaimed shocked.

"You are all just stood here arguing with each other and wanting to get one up on everyone and you're forgetting that mom and Rory are in surgery right this minute! They could be dying and all you care about is your stupid pride!" She exclaimed. "Mom and Rory could be dying! They could be...They could...They..." She said suddenly panting heavily.

"Olivia?" Luke said concerned.

"I...I can't...I can't breathe..." She said, gasping.

"Olivia?" Richard said just as concerned as Emily watched on in shock.

"Ok, sit down." Luke said taking charge, gently leading her to a seat. "Just focus on your breathing ok?" Luke said softly.

"What a stupid thing to say!" Emily snapped.

Luke ignored her and focused on Olivia. "Liv, you're having a panic attack ok? Just focus on my voice. I need to you to focus on your breathing. Deep breaths ok? In and out like this..." He said softly, breathing along with her.

"I...can't..." Olivia said, still breathing heavily.

"You can." Luke said softly, taking hold of her hands that were trembling. "Just focus on my voice ok and follow my lead?" He said. "In and out...in and out..." He said.

Slowly, with Luke's help, she managed to slow her breathing down, Emily and Richard watching the interaction in surprise.

"There we go, that's it." Luke said.

"How...how did you know how to do that? What to do?" Olivia asked quietly.

Luke glanced at Jess before glancing back at her. "Uh..Liz...she used to have panic attacks." He admitted. "Dad never knew what to do so I..uh..I took care of it."

Olivia glanced at him. "Please don't leave." She said quietly. "I need you." She admitted. "Mom needs you..."

"I'm not going anywhere." Luke promised. "You're stuck with me, ok?"

Olivia gave him a tremulous smile and got up and hugged him tight. "They will be ok, won't they?" She said.

"I have no doubt." Luke assured her, holding her close.

"Are you family of Lorelai and Rory Gilmore?" A voice said hesitantly.

They all turned to see a doctor standing there. "Yeah. Are they ok?" Olivia asked, subconsciously grabbing hold of Luke's hand.

"I'm sorry if I was interrupting." The doctor said.

"You weren't. Are they ok?" Luke asked.

"We're Lorelai's parents. Are they going to be ok?" Emily asked.

"Your daughter was very lucky." The doctor said. "The surgery went well for her. She has a broken arm and cuts and bruises. She's resting now but we're positive she will make a full recovery." He told them.

"Really?" Olivia said letting out a breath.

"Really." The doctor smiled at her.

Olivia smiled tremulously at Luke who she could have sworn had tears in his eyes. "That's..."

"Great..." Luke said.

"What about Rory?" Jess asked.

Olivia saw the smile vanish from the doctor's face. "What is it?" She said, her heart suddenly dropping.

"There were...complications..." The doctor said. "Rory bore the brunt of the crash as the car drove into the passenger seat side." He explained. "I'm afraid Rory suffered a pretty serious head wound. We managed to stop the bleeding in surgery but we won't know the extent of her head injury until she wakes up." He said.

"She hasn't woken up yet?" Olivia said quietly.

"She will be ok, right?" Jess said.

"We can't be sure. Head injuries can be serious. They can cause memory loss or brain damage." He explained.

"You're...you're saying she could suffer from those?" Jess said quietly, glancing at Olivia who had gone pale.

"Like I said, we can't be sure. But you need to be prepared. Rory is very lucky to still be alive." He told them.

"No...this can't be happening..." Olivia said sinking down into a seat. "You must be mistaken..."

"I'm really sorry. All we can do is wait until she wakes up and then we will know more." The doctor said.

"But she could be ok right? I mean you say she could suffer memory loss or brain damage but there are two sides. She could be ok?" Luke said.

"Of course. But we can't know for certain until she wakes up." The doctor nodded.

"Well then we have to stay positive." Luke said glancing at Olivia and Jess. He glanced at Emily and Richard who looked in shock as well. "Right?" He said hesitantly.

"You're right." Richard spoke first. "We need to stay positive. Are we allowed to see them?" He asked.

"Of course, I'll show you the way." The doctor said.

* * *

Lorelai felt her eyes open slightly and she squinted as she took in the unfamiliar surroundings. She suddenly felt movement beside her and a familiar voice.

"Lorelai?"

"Luke?" She said hoarsely, trying to sit up.

"No, don't move ok? Take it slow." Luke said.

"Wha...What happened?" She asked, glancing over at him.

"You were in a car accident." Luke said softly. "But you're going to be ok. You're in hospital but they're positive you're going to make a full recovery."

Lorelai frowned and tried to think back to what had happened. Her eyes suddenly widened. "Rory!" She exclaimed, trying to get up.

"Whoa, no Lorelai, you can't! You need to rest!" Luke said stopping her.

"Rory was in the car! I need to see her! I need to make sure she's ok!" She exclaimed. "Have you seen her? Is she ok?"

Luke hesitated, not knowing how to break it to her. "Lorelai..."

"Oh god...No...please don't tell me...Please don't tell me she's dead..." Lorelai said shakily.

"No!" Luke said quickly. "No, she's not dead. I promise you. She's here. But..." He said taking a deep breath. "She suffered a serious head injury. They managed to stop the bleeding but...she...she hasn't woken up yet. So they don't know the extent of it yet."

"Oh god no..." Lorelai said tremulously. "I need to see her."

"Lorelai..."

"Please Luke! She's my daughter! I need to see you her!" She begged desperately.

"I know. I know you want to see her. But you won't be any use to her if you make yourself worse." Luke said softly.

"But...you said I was going to be fine..." She said quietly.

"You are. You will be. But you were still in a serious accident, Lorelai. You need to rest." He said. He sighed. "You need to be better so you can be there for Rory when she wakes up."

"When? You said when." Lorelai said quietly.

"She'll wake up, Lorelai. I know she will. And she's going to be fine." Luke said. "But right now, you need to rest. For yourself. And for Rory and Olivia."

"Olivia! Is she here? Is she ok?" Lorelai asked.

"It's been a rough day for her. But she's ok. She's with Jess in Rory's room. And your parents are here as well." He said.

"My parents? Oh god..."

"It may have come out we were dating." Luke said hesitantly.

"How?"

"Well...Jess got all angry because they were trying to get us to leave and he sort of blurted it out. I don't think he meant to. He was just...well, he was worried about you both." He sighed.

"It's ok." She smiled softly. She took hold of his hand. "I'm glad you didn't leave." She said quietly.

"I'm not going anywhere." He assured her. "Hey...hey, come on..." He said when he saw tears starting to run down her face. "Rory's going to get through this ok? She's tough. Just like her mother."

"I...I only took my eyes off the road for a moment." She sniffed.

"What happened?" He asked softly.

"Rory was so excited about Harvard. She had taken part in one of the lectures going on there and she was amazing. Really blown everyone away. We were chatting about it and laughing and...I must have missed the light turning red and suddenly a car came from right. I heard Rory scream and then everything went black.."

"It wasn't your fault." Luke said softly.

"I should have paid attention. I should have..." Lorelai cried.

"It was a mistake. An accident. It wasn't your fault, Lorelai. Rory's going to be fine ok? I know she will be. And I'll be here by your side the whole time, ok?" He said.

"She's my baby..." Lorelai sobbed.

"I know." He said softly, pulling her gently into a hug. "It's all going to be ok. I promise."

"I love you." She said.

"Oh Lorelai, you have no idea." He said. "When I thought...when I heard about the accident and that you were in surgery, I thought..." He said his voice cracking slightly.

"Luke..." She said softly. "I'm ok."

"Promise me, you'll rest. You'll do what the doctor says." Luke said. "I'll sit with Rory until you're well enough. I promise. She will never be alone."

"Ok." She said. "I promise."

Luke let out a breath. "Thank you." He said leaning forward to kiss her. "Thank you."

* * *

"You know...we may have our petty arguments but...we've always had each other's backs." Olivia said quietly as she sat next to Jess, next to Rory's bed.

"I know." Jess said.

"You know once...when we were at Stars Hollow High...I was caught passing notes in class and I was put in detention. I knew mom would be so disappointed so when Rory found out, before I knew it, she had taken the whole blame for it and she was put in detention herself." Olivia said. "When I found out what she had done, I deliberately got into trouble so I could join her. It was the first and last time we'd been in detention." She smiled slightly.

"You're crazy." Jess chuckled slightly.

"Mom still doesn't know to this day." Olivia laughed slightly. She glanced at her sister and sighed. "She always has my back, no matter what. I...I don't deserve her." She said quietly.

Jess glanced at her. "Hey, don't talk like that. You're an amazing sister to her as well. She's told me that." He said softly, putting her arm round her.

"She has?" Olivia asked, sniffing slightly.

"Yeah. She loves you, Liv." Jess said.

"She's everything to me." Olivia admitted. "I just...what if she does have memory loss? Or brain damage? What if she forgets all about me and mom? About everything about our life?"

"She won't." He said.

"How do you know?"

"Because it's Rory. How could she forget you and your mom? It would be impossible." He said.

Olivia smiled tremulously at him. "I'm sorry. I..I know it must be killing you as well. Seeing her like this..."

"Hey, she's your sister." Jess said softly.

"And she's your girlfriend. You don't have to be strong infront of me, you know. It's really sweet but...you don't have to be." She said softly. She sighed and leant her head on his shoulder. "She's been the happiest she's ever been lately and that's because of you."

"She told you that?" He asked.

"She didn't need to. It was obvious." Olivia said.

Jess sighed. "I'm really glad you weren't in that car as well." He said. He saw Olivia give him a confused look. "Not like that. I just...I think I'd be going crazy right now if you had both been lying here. You two...you mean a lot to me. I know I'm rubbish at this emotional crap but I...I love you guys." He admitted.

Olivia smiled softly. "We love you too." She said. "Well, Rory probably does in a different way if you get what I mean." She smirked slightly.

Jess chuckled a little. "That's good with me."

Suddenly the door opened and a familiar voice spoke. "I'm not interrupting, am I?"

"Ben!" Olivia said getting up. "What are you doing here?"

"Luke called my dad. Told him what had happened. I wanted to be here. For you." He said. "How are you doing?" He asked before kicking himself. "Sorry, silly question."

"No, it's ok." She smiled tremulously. "I'm ok." She said. "Well...I'm holding up." She admitted. "You didn't need to come."

"No place I'd rather be. If you want me here, I'm here." Ben said.

Olivia blinked back tears and rushed towards him, hugging him. "Thank you." She said. "I..uh..I was just going to go see my mom." She said. She glanced over at Jess. "Will you be ok?" She asked.

"You go see your mom." He assured her. "I'll be fine."

"I'll come back later ok?"

Jess nodded. "Tell your mom...well, tell her I'm glad she's going to be ok."

"I will." She smiled softly. "And hey Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"Rory's going to be fine." She smiled.

"I hope so." He gave her a small smile, before watching her leave. "Hey Ben?" He said.

"Yeah?"

"Look after her, yeah? She may say she's ok but...well, this...Rory being like this...it's hit her hard." Jess said quietly.

Ben nodded. "I give you my word." He said.

Jess nodded. "Thanks."

* * *

"Mom?" Olivia said quietly as she peeked her head round her mom's room.

"Liv..." Lorelai smiled softly.

"Mom!" Olivia exclaimed rushing over and hugging her tightly. "I'm sorry. Did that hurt?" She said suddenly pulling away.

"It's worth it." Lorelai said, holding her close.

"I'll leave you to it." Luke smiled softly. "Let's get some food." He told Ben who was standing at the doorway.

Ben nodded. "I'm glad you're ok." He told Lorelai.

"Thanks Ben." She said softly. She watched Luke head for the door. "Hey Luke?"

"Yeah?" He said turning round.

"Thanks...for being here." She said.

"I wouldn't be anywhere else." He said.

"I know you hate hospitals." Lorelai said. "I just...It means a lot that you're here."

"I'm not going anywhere." Luke smiled softly before leaving the room.

"Have...have you seen her?" Lorelai asked Olivia.

Olivia blinked back tears. "Yeah...She..uh..she just looks like she's sleeping."

"Well...she is. It's about time she sleeps. All the school work she's been doing lately. She needs a break from that." Lorelai forced a smile.

"Yeah..." Olivia said quietly.

"Hey, come here." Lorelai said softly. "Come sit with me. Rory's going to be fine."

Olivia felt some tears run down her face. "I know everyone's been saying that to make us feel better. Hell I've been telling Jess that. But...we both know that might not be the case..." She said sniffing.

Lorelai felt tears run down her face as well. "You're right." She said tremulously. "But what we can do is stay positive. Rory will always be Rory to us whatever happens right?"

"Right.." Olivia nodded.

"We'll get through this together, ok?" Lorelai assured her daughter.

"I'm so glad you're ok, mom. I...I was so scared." She admitted.

"I'm sorry I scared you." Lorelai sniffed. "But I promise you, I'm going to be fine."

"You know, Luke's been great. Like really great." Olivia said softly. "I...I was freaking out slightly and he assured me that whatever happened, I wouldn't be alone. That he would be there for me no matter what."

"He said that?" She said softly.

"Yeah...and then I sort of had a panic attack when we were waiting for news on you and Rory..." She admitted.

"You what?" Lorelai said surprised.

"I'm fine. Luke...he..uh..he sorted it. He was so calm, mom. He helped me." She said.

Lorelai smiled softly. "Wow..."

"He's a good one, mom. Don't...don't screw this up." Olivia said, but smirked slightly to show she was teasing her.

Lorelai laughed for the first time since she woke up. "I can assure you I have no plans in doing that."

"Good." Olivia smiled, snuggling up to her. "Hey mom?"

"Yeah?"

"She's going to be fine." She said firmly. "Who else is going to be the voice of reason in our family?"

Lorelai smiled slightly. "No one comes to mind." She said softly.

"I love you, mom."

"Oh kid, you have no idea." Lorelai said holding her close, blinking back tears as they just lay there for ages just taking support in each other's company.

 **So I hope you liked it! Please let me know what you think by reviewing! :) Thanks again for your continued support! :)**


	21. Chapter 21

**Sorry for the delay! Been crazy busy at work so haven't had time to write. Hope you enjoy this chapter! :) Thank you so much for all your support so far!**

Chapter 21

It had been a few days since the accident and Lorelai, Olivia and Jess had stayed vigil by Rory's bedside as she still hadn't woken up. Lorelai had been discharged the day after the accident. Luke opened the door to her room one morning and was met by two guilty faces.

"What are you doing here?" Jess asked.

"I could ask you both the same question." Luke said. "Aren't you two meant to be at school?"

"I can't concentrate." Olivia said quietly. "Everyone keeps asking me about Rory and I just don't know what to say anymore."

Luke sighed. "I get that you both want to be here. I understand that. But do you think your mom would be happy if she knew you were skipping school?" He said to Olivia.

"It's only been once. Give her a break." Jess said.

"It hasn't been once. You've been here since the accident." Luke pointed out. "I haven't said anything but I've seen you here."

"Are you going to tell mom?" Olivia asked.

He sighed. "No." He said. "She's got enough to worry about right now."

"Where is she?" She asked.

"I managed to persuade her to get some sleep back at home." Luke said.

Olivia nodded. "She's not been sleeping at night. I hear her walking about." She said quietly before sighing.

"Are you going to make us go to school?" Jess asked.

Luke sighed. "Think about Rory. Do you think she'd be happy if she knew she was the reason you were skipping school?" He said.

"No..." Jess had to admit.

"She'd kick our asses." Olivia said smiling slightly.

Luke chuckled slightly. "Exactly! Look, how about we do a deal? I won't tell Lorelai about you skipping school and you go back to school for this afternoon. Both of you." He said. "You've only got one week left anyway. And I promise, any time that Lorelai's not here or you two aren't here, I'll make sure I am. So she will never be alone." He said. "Deal?"

Olivia sighed and glanced at her sister who still had her eyes closed, before glancing at Jess who she could tell was thinking the same at her and then she glanced back at Luke and nodded. "Deal." She said.

"Good." He said. He glanced at Rory lying there. "So no change?" He asked.

"Nothing." Jess said quietly.

"And they don't seem to know when there might be." Olivia said. "I wish she would just wake up."

"She will." Luke assured her. "But in her own time."

"I miss her." Olivia said quietly. "It's weird not having her around."

"She'll be ok. She's tough." Luke assured her.

Olivia gave him a small smile. "Hey Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for not grassing us up to mom." She said.

"Hey, she's not the only one going through a rough time at the moment. I know how hard this is for you. I know how much Rory means to you. To both of you." Luke said softly. "We'll get through this together, yeah?"

"Yeah." Olivia said softly.

* * *

"Jess, wait up!" A familiar voice called as he was leaving school that afternoon.

"Hey." He nodded at Lane.

"Is there...?"

"No change yet." Jess said.

"I'm sorry." Lane said quietly. She glanced at him. "How are you doing?"

Jess just shrugged. "Will be better when I'm back at that hospital." He said.

"Oh yeah, of course. I'm sorry if I've kept you. I just...I..." Lane said her voice cracking slightly. "She and Olivia are my best friends...I...I'm sorry. I'll just lave you to it." She said starting to walk off.

"Lane, wait." Jess said.

"I'm sorry I've not come to visit her. I just...I didn't want to intrude. What you, Olivia and Lorelai must be going through, I can't even start to imagine." Lane said. "Just...can you let me know when she wakes up?"

"Why don't you come with me?" He said.

"What? Are you sure? I wouldn't want to intrude..." She said.

"You wouldn't. And I'm sure Liv would appreciate seeing you." Jess said. He glanced at her. "And I would appreciate it. You don't know how many people have been bugging me about Rory and what's going on. All jerks that believe they were her best friend when she used to go to this school and I know she couldn't stand any of them. But you...well, I know you were her best friend and you're the only person I wouldn't mind asking me about her but you're the only one who hasn't and well...I've appreciated it." He said. "But you have every right to know what's going on. You've been a good friend to her and Liv. And...well, to me." He said, giving her a small smile. "Who else would have kept me sane at this school when they left to Chilton, huh?"

Lane smiled softly. "Thanks Jess." She said. "And...I would love to come see Rory with you."

"Good." Jess nodded. He glanced at her. "Thanks." He said. "Hey, maybe your familiar voice will wake her up?"

Lane smiled sadly. "Let's hope so." She said, before linking arms with him and following him towards the diner.

* * *

"Hey." Ben smiled softly.

"Hey." Olivia smiled back as she got off the bus from Chilton.

"How are you holding up?" He asked giving her a hug.

"I'm holding." She nodded.

"And your mom?" He asked.

"The same."

"Must be hard." Ben said sympathetically. "It's the not knowing that sucks isn't it?" He said as they started walking down the street towards the diner.

Olivia glanced at him. "Was that the worst thing with your mom?" She asked. "Except for her...well, you know..."

"Dying?" He said.

Olivia cringed. "Sorry." She apologised. "That sounded extremely insensitive. It just...forget it." She said.

"No, ask me." Ben said. "It's ok." He assured her.

"Your mom was in a car accident right?" She asked hesitantly.

"Yeah." He said. "Drunk driver."

"I'm sorry." She said quietly. "She was alone in the car?"

"Yeah. She was on her way to pick me and Amy up from school. I remember dad rushing in about an hour later and I know I was only 10 but I knew something was wrong." Ben said as they sat down on a bench. "It was the waiting that killed. We just didn't know what was happening. We were sat at the hospital for hours before we found out that...that she died on the table." He said quietly.

Olivia reached over and took hold of his hand. "I'm so sorry. That's...that's awful."

Ben blinked back some tears. "It was a long time ago." He said.

"But she was still your mom. You must miss her." She said softly.

"Yeah. She was still my mom." Ben sighed. He glanced at her. "I get that the waiting sucks. And not knowing how Rory's going to be when she wakes up. But she'll be fine. And she will remember you. Who could ever forget you, eh?" He smiled softly.

Olivia blinked back some tears. "Yeah." She said softly. "Yeah you're right." She said. "And thanks..."

"For what?"

"For saying when she wakes up instead of if she wakes up." She said.

"She'll wake up." He smiled. "Trust me."

"I do." She smiled softly. "And thanks...for sharing what happened with your mom. I know you find it hard talking about her."

"I just want you to know I know what you're going through. And I'm here. Whenever you need me." Ben said.

"I know. Thanks." Olivia smiled softly before leaning in to kiss him. "Hey Ben?"

"Yeah?"

"Will you come with me to see Rory today?" She asked.

"Nowhere else I'd rather be." He smiled.

* * *

"Liv and Jess should be here right. She just messaged me saying they're on their way." Lorelai told Luke as they sat next to Rory's bed. "Lane and Ben are coming too."

"Ok." Luke said.

Lorelai sighed and looked at her daughter. "I wish that was me lying there." She said.

"What?" Luke said.

"If it was me lying there, then it wouldn't be Rory. Which would mean she would be ok." Lorelai said.

"But that would also mean you would be lying there and I don't know how I would cope with that." Luke said.

"Better me than Rory. She's got her whole life ahead of her yet." She said.

"So have you." Luke pointed out.

"Luke..." Lorelai said.

Luke sighed. "I know." He assured her. "Look, I would swap places with her right now if it meant both of you were ok. You know that right?" He said.

Lorelai blinked back tears and gave him a tremulous smile. "I know." She said. "I'm sorry I'm such a wreck. You've been amazing and...and..."

"Hey, come here." Luke said putting his arm round her. "It's ok." He assured her.

"I just want her back. I want my baby girl back." She said tremulously.

"I know." Luke said, comforting her. "I know."

"Mom?" Olivia said peeking her head in.

"Hey hon!" Lorelai said quickly wiping her tears away.

"Are you ok?" She asked.

"Of course." Lorelai forced a smile.

"Mom..." She said softly.

"I'm just going to get something to eat with Luke at the canteen. Will you guys be ok in here for a bit?" She said.

"Sure." Olivia said. "Are you sure you're ok?"

"She's just worried." Luke said softly. "We all are."

"She'll wake up, mom. I know she will. And she'll be fine." Olivia said softly. "Ben told me she would be. And I believe him."

Lorelai smiled genuinely at Ben. "I'm sure she will be. I'll see you in a bit."

"Yeah...see you in a bit." She sighed, watching her mom go. "It's breaking her." She told the others. "I don't know how much more waiting she can take."

"How about Lane and I go check on her and you two sit with Rory for a bit?" Ben suggested. "We'll bring you back some food."

"Ok." Olivia said quietly.

"Hey..." Ben said softly, bringing her in for a hug and giving her a quick kiss. "She'll wake up soon."

"Thanks." She said tremulously. She watched him and Lane leave the room and then she went to sit down next to Jess who had already taken his place next to Rory, holding her hand. "Hey sis..." She said quietly.

Jess glanced at her. "Ben's right. She will be ok. She has to be." He said gruffly.

Olivia blinked back tears. "But what if she's not?"

"Liv..."

"The doctors said there's a chance she won't be! We can't ignore that!" She said.

"I know. But we have to stay positive." Jess said.

"You're talking to me about being positive? You, Jess Mariano?" Olivia snorted. "Sure..."

"Hey, I have to keep telling myself that or else I'm going to have to face the fact that I might never be able to tell her that I love her!" Jess snapped.

"What?" Olivia said shocked.

Jess went quiet. "I'm sorry. You...you don't want to hear me say that."

Olivia sighed and took hold of his spare hand. "Yes I do." She said softly. "I'm sorry." She said softly. "I'm paying so much attention to how I feel that I forget that you're going through hell as well."

"Yeah...but she's your sister. She's family to you." Jess said.

"And she's your girlfriend." Olivia said softly. "Apparently the girl you love...?" She said cautiously.

Jess ducked his head slightly and then glanced at her. "Is...Is that ok?" He asked her.

Olivia smiled tremulously at her. "I think it's great." She said softly. "And you know what? I think Rory will be pumped to hear you tell her that when she wakes up..." She smiled, receiving a small smile back from him in return.

"Tell me what?" A hoarse voice said.

"Rory?" Olivia spun her head back to her sister to see her slowly opening her eyes.

"Ror?" Jess said softly.

"Je...Jess?" Rory said quietly.

Jess and Olivia exchanged relieved glances. "Yeah it's me." Jess said. "Oh geez, it's so good to hear your voice."

"We've been so worried! You have no idea." Olivia smiled through her tears.

Rory glanced at her and then back at Jess. "What's going on? Who...who is that? Should I know her?"

"What?" Olivia said feeling her heart stop.

Jess glanced at Olivia who had gone pale and then back at Rory. "Wait, Rory, you know who I am right?" He checked.

"You're Jess." Rory said.

"Yeah...and..uh..do you remember that we're..uh..." Jess said awkwardly.

"Dating?"

"Yeah..." He said letting out a breath.

"Of course. You're my boyfriend." She said confused. "You are right?"

"Yeah I am." Jess assured her quickly. "But...you don't know who Liv is?"

"Liv? Is that your name?" Rory asked, looking at Olivia. "I...I'm sorry. Should I know who you are? I...I'm confused. What's going on? What's happened? Why am I here?" She asked, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Oh god..." Olivia said quietly.

"Liv..." Jess said.

"I feel sick." Olivia said suddenly getting up and rushing out of the room.

 **I've thought long and hard about this outcome and was really nervous writing it but I hope you like it! Please keep the reviews coming and I really love reading what you think! :) Thanks again for all your support! I really do appreciate it. :)**


	22. Chapter 22

**Thank you for your continued support! Here's the next chapter. :)**

Chapter 22

"Liv?" Ben said as she ran past him, Lane, Lorelai and Luke.

Olivia ignored them even though she could hear them calling after her. She kept running until she reached the toilets and she ran into the cubicle, locking the door behind her. She bent over the toilet and threw up. She felt sick. Her own sister didn't recognise her. She didn't know who she was and it terrified her. Rory had always been there for her their whole life. She needed her. She wiped her mouth with some toilet paper and flushed the toilet. She then slid down the wall and finally let her emotions give in. She felt the tears come and she couldn't stop. It felt a lifetime until she heard the door to the toilets open and some footsteps stop outside her cubicle when in reality it had only been a few minutes.

"Liv?" Ben said softly.

Olivia wiped away a few tears. "You shouldn't be in here. This is the ladies' toilets." She sniffed.

"I don't care." He said. He sighed. "Liv, I'm so sorry. I told you everything would be ok. I promised you that Rory...that she would be ok. Liv, I'm so sorry..."

"You...you know?" She asked quietly.

"We...we went in. Jess told us..." He said.

Ben waited for a moment but he suddenly heard the cubicle opening. "She doesn't remember anyone except Jess." He said quietly.

"She doesn't remember mom?" Olivia asked stunned.

"Noone except Jess. You need to come back though. Rory's in a state." He said. "She's really confused."

"How can I help though? She doesn't know who I am." She sniffed.

"Yeah but she's upset that she may have upset you. She's confused and she doesn't know what she's done wrong." Ben said. "None of this is her fault."

Olivia blinked back tears. "I know it's not."

"Come here." Ben said softly pulling her into a hug. "I know this is hard. And I'm here for you. Whenever you need it ok? But Rory needs you now as well. More than anything. She may not realise she does but she does."

Olivia let out a big breath and nodded, giving him a tremulous smile. "You're right. She needs me." She said. She glanced at him. "You'll come with me though, right?"

"Of course." He assured her. "I'm here. Always."

She nodded and wiped away a few more tears before taking a deep breath. "Then let's go." She said, forcing a smile.

They headed back to Rory's room to find a commotion. Olivia watched as everyone was trying to calm Rory down but nothing was working. Even Jess couldn't calm her down. She took a deep breath before rushing towards the bed.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"She's freaking out. She's confused. She doesn't understand what's going on." Jess told her. "I can't help her."

Olivia looked at her sister and took a deep breath. She slowly went forward and grabbed her sister's hand. "Rory? Hey Rory, it's ok." She said.

Rory looked at her. "What's going on? Why I am like this? And why are people acting like I should know them when I don't?" She exclaimed.

"You really need to relax." The doctor said. "Or we are going to have to give you something to help with that."

"But..." Rory said.

"Hey, it's ok." Olivia said, squeezing her hand. "Just focus on me, ok? And focus on my breathing." She said. She glanced at Luke who gave her a small smile and nodded. She turned back to Rory. "I think you're having a panic attack. Follow me, ok? Breathe in and out...in and out..." She said. She was relieved when Rory copied her and it seemed to be working.

"What's going on? Why am I here?" Rory asked close to tears.

"You were in a car accident." Olivia explained. "You...you suffered a head injury. I think that's why you're having memory problems."

Rory glanced around the room and then back at Olivia. "You...You're really my sister?" She asked.

Olivia took a deep breath and forced a smile. "That's what our birth certificates prove." She said.

"I...I'm really trying...but...I just...I remember Jess but..." Rory said.

"But noone else..." Olivia said quietly.

"I'm trying. I just...Am I never going to remember? Am I always going to be like this?" Rory said worried.

"No." She said quickly. "I promise you, we are all going to help you remember ok? This is just a minor setback but I promise you, you will get your memory back." She said.

"She's right, sweets." Lorelai spoke for the first time, going forward. "We're all here to help you. We...we love you so much." She said blinking back tears.

"I want to remember...I just...can't." Rory sniffed. She glanced at Jess. "Help me remember? I want to remember."

"Hey, I'm not going anywhere." Jess promised.

* * *

"So you're saying Rory could retain her memories?" Lorelai asked the doctor later that day.

"It is likely that she will. Many people who have suffered some sort of memory loss from a car accident have retained their memories. But it could take some time. It's different for everyone." The doctor explained.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Olivia asked.

"Keep talking to her. Keep telling her stories from your past. It could trigger something." The doctor said.

"When can we take her home? Surely being home could help?" Lorelai said.

"Well..." The doctor hesitated.

"What?" Lorelai said.

"Well, it's going to be scary for Rory to go home with people she doesn't know." The doctor said cautiously.

"We're her family!" Lorelai exclaimed.

"But she doesn't remember you." He said.

"So you're saying we can't take her home?" She frowned.

"No, not at all. As soon as we feel she is ready to be discharged, we would encourage you to take her home. Like you said, being home could trigger some memories." The doctor said. "But...would it be possible for Jess to move in with you for a bit?" He asked. "She knows him. She feels comfortable with him. It might help."

Lorelai glanced at Luke. "Would you be ok with that?" She asked.

"If it helps Rory, of course." Luke nodded.

"And how about you?" She asked Jess.

"If it's ok with you." Jess said.

"Mom, I think it would be a good idea." Olivia said. "Rory obviously feels comfortable with him. And he can help tell her stories as well."

Lorelai bit her lip but then nodded. "Ok." She said.

"I really do feel like it would help make Rory feel more comfortable going home." The doctor said.

"When do you think she can come home?" Lorelai asked.

"We would like to observe her for a couple of days and make sure there are no other issues." He said. "But we will let you know and keep you updated. Her welfare and health is our top priority, we can assure you that. We want her home as soon as possible, just like you."

"Thank you." She said quietly. She sighed. "Do you really think she will be able to retain her memories? Honestly? I can take it." She said.

The doctor sighed. "It's different for everyone. But Rory is young and I have every belief she can come back from this. You just have to be patient."

"Ok." Lorelai said letting out a slightly relieved breath. "Thank you." She said.

"Mom..."

Lorelai turned to Olivia and saw the tears in her eyes again. "Oh come here, hon." She said engulfing her daughter into a hug. "We'll get through this together, ok?"

"Ok." Olivia sniffed.

* * *

After saying goodbye to Ben and Lane and after making an excuse of needing the toilet, she left her mom, Luke and Jess at the canteen and slowly made her way to Rory's room. She took a deep breath before knocking on the door and going inside. She saw Rory lying in her bed but she turned when she heard her.

"I'm sorry. I didn't wake you, did I?" Olivia asked.

Rory shook her head. "No." She said quietly.

Olivia slowly went forward and sat by her bed. "I can't even begin to imagine how confusing and scary this must be for you." She said quietly.

"I just wish I could remember." Rory said. She glanced at her. "It's weird..."

"What is?"

"I don't remember you but I feel like I should, you know? I don't know what it is but I just feel connected to you." Rory said softly.

"It could be to do with the fact that we're twins." Olivia smiled softly.

"We're twins?" Rory asked.

"Well not identical ones but yeah." She said.

"Well that would probably be why then." Rory said. "Hey, maybe that's a good sign I feel something, right?"

Olivia smiled softly. "Yeah. Definitely."

Rory glanced at her. "I'm sorry if I upset you earlier. I didn't mean too." She said.

"Don't worry about it." She assured her sister. "I just want to help you get better. I want to help you remember. Whatever you need me to do, whatever you want me to do, I'm here ok?"

Rory nodded. "Thank you." She said blinking back tears.

"Hey..." Olivia said softly, spotting the tears.

"I'm sorry..." She said wiping away her tears. "I just...I don't feel like myself. And I want to be. I want to remember you because I think you're pretty cool."

Olivia blinked back tears as well. "Hey, you're pretty cool as well." She said.

"Yeah? Is it normally us against the world?" Rory asked, smiling slightly.

Olivia laughed slightly. "Hell yeah! Well, mom's always on our team but yeah. We kick ass, I promise you."

Rory laughed slightly. "Wow, you make us sound awesome."

Olivia smirked. "We are."

Rory smiled slightly. "Let's hope I can remember it soon then..." She said.

Olivia's smile faded slightly. "Come here." She said pulling her sister into a hug. "I promise you, I will do anything to help you feel like yourself again, ok? Anything."

"Thanks." Rory said softly, accepting the hug. "Thank you."

 **Sorry it's a bit shorter but I wanted to get something up for you! I'm not a medical expert by the way so please be kind! :) I hope you liked it! Please keep the reviews coming as I love reading what you think. Thanks again for all your support! :)**


	23. Chapter 23

**Thank you for all your continued support! It really does mean so much to me. :) Here's the next chapter.**

Chapter 23

"I was told you would be working, not just sitting in my chair." Michel drawled.

"What?" Olivia said coming out of her daze.

"Your mother told me you would be helping. She didn't say that you would just be sitting there, doing nothing." He said.

"Oh. Sorry." Olivia said quietly.

Michel glanced at her, surprised by the lack of a cheeky retort. "How is your sister?" He asked cautiously.

Olivia just shrugged. "She still doesn't remember anything. I was hoping her being home would help but it doesn't seem to have." She said quietly. She sighed. It had been a week since Rory had woken up and she had been home for several days now. "I feel like an outsider in my own home. Rory doesn't feel comfortable with me or mom. I don't know how I can help her..."

"She will remember you." Michel said.

"How do you know?"

"Because you are hard to forget. Trust me. I've had many years of you annoying me here." He said.

Olivia smiled slightly. "Yeah...I guess it's more fun doing it together." She sighed.

"That's why I'm sure Rory will be fine. You both find it too hard to not taunt me every day." Michel said dryly.

"Hey!" Ben suddenly said appearing at the reception desk.

"Oh hey!" Olivia said.

"Do you have some time?" He asked.

"For what?" She asked.

"I know how hard things have been for you recently so I wanted to treat you." Ben said. "Are you free?"

"Oh..uh.." Olivia said, glancing at Michel.

"Go. It's not like you're helping here anyway." He drawled.

"Sorry." She said sheepishly.

Michel smiled slightly. "Go. Have some fun." He said. "And tell your mother that I am fine here. She can spend time with Rory today if she wants."

"I'm sure she'll appreciate that." Olivia smiled.

"Now get out of here. You're distracting me." He smirked.

"I'm gone!" Olivia grinned. She went round the desk to Ben but before she followed him out, she turned back. "Hey Michel?"

"What?" Michel said.

"Thanks." She smiled softly.

Michel ducked his head slightly but gave her a small smile. "Give my best to Rory and your mother."

"I will." She said. She gave him another smile before following Ben out.

* * *

"Why are we going up here?" Olivia asked as Ben led her up to the diner apartment. "Does Luke know we're here?"

"Well he saw us going up here, didn't he?" Ben said.

"Well yeah but..." Olivia said.

"Relax, he actually helped me with this." Ben smiled opening the door to the apartment.

"Whoa...Ben..." Olivia said stunned as she stared at the candle lit table with food already prepared. "You did all this?" She asked.

"Well, the food was all Luke. He said they were your favourites." Ben said. "The table and the meal was my idea."

"Luke did the food. For me?" She asked touched.

"He knows how hard things have been recently. When I came to him to ask whether I could use the apartment, he offered to cook the food." Ben smiled.

"That's sweet." Olivia smiled softly.

"He cares about you." Ben said. "So do I."

Olivia blinked back some tears. "This was so sweet of you."

"Hey, I didn't want to make you cry!" Ben said.

"No I'm not! These are happy tears." She said quickly. "I promise." She said. She gave him a tremulous smile. "Thank you." She said hugging him and then giving him a quick kiss.

"Come on, let's eat." He smiled softly.

* * *

"Here you go." Lorelai smiled giving Rory and Jess a soda. "Would you like anything else? Some food?" She asked.

"I'm fine." Rory gave her a small smile. "Jess and I were just going to hang out and exchange notes on books and stuff." She said. "You don't need to stay if you've got work to do."

"Well actually, apparently Michel told your sister that he's fine by himself so I was hoping to spend the day with you." Lorelai said.

"Oh. Ok." Rory said.

"I..uh..I don't have to." Lorelai said. "I guess I can run some errands..."

"Well if you've got errands to run, that's fine. I'll be fine here with Jess." Rory said.

"Right...well...ok, sure. I guess I'll see you later then." She said.

"Ok." She gave her a small smile. "See you later."

"Yeah...uh...see you later." Lorelai said. She blinked back tears before heading out of the house.

Jess glanced at Rory. "You don't have to send her out every day. She wants to spend time with you." He said cautiously.

"I just...It's weird...not remembering anything...not remembering...her..." Rory said quietly. "I feel comfortable with you. I feel safe with you."

"You can feel safe with her. She's your mom. And you can feel safe with Liv as well. They love you, Ror. They only want to help." He said.

"I know." Rory sniffed. "I'm sorry. I...I don't know why I'm acting like a bitch to them. I just..."

"Hey come here." Jess said pulling her towards him. "You'll get better, I promise. You'll get your memories back."

"I want to. I want to so badly. I see them looking devastated when I push them away and I hate it. I feel so guilty." Rory admitted.

"They don't blame you." Jess assured them. "They just want to help. Look, I'm not going anywhere ok? I'm here to help you as well but you need to let them in as well."

"I know." She said. "I will." She promised.

Jess gave her a small smile. "I know it's hard. But maybe talking to them can trigger memories? It might help."

"Yeah. Yeah I know. I..uh..I'll try. I promise." Rory gave him a small smile. "But now...can we just hang out? Together?"

"Nowhere else I'd rather be." He smiled softly, kissing the side of her head.

* * *

"Hey! You guys all done?" Luke asked as he saw Ben and Olivia reappear from upstairs.

"Yeah. I washed the dishes and left them on the side. And I tidied everything." Ben said.

"You didn't need to do that." Luke said.

"I know. But I wanted to." Ben smiled.

"Thanks for the food. It was delicious." Olivia smiled softly. "And it was really sweet of you to help Ben."

"Ah it was no big deal." Luke shrugged it off. "You deserved it."

Olivia smiled and went round the counter. "It was a big deal." She said softly.

"You shouldn't be round here. Potatoes can fall on your head..." Luke said.

"I don't care." Olivia said putting her arms round him and giving him a hug. "Thanks Luke." She said softly.

Luke sighed and held her close. "Things will get better." He assured her.

"Mom's struggling. I know she is. I can hear her crying in her room." Olivia sighed. She glanced at him. "Hey, you should come over tonight." She said.

"What?" He said surprised.

"Yeah! You could come and we could all have a family dinner." Olivia said.

"Ah I see!" He said. "You just want me to cook for you all!" He said smirking slightly, although he was slightly surprised by Olivia calling it a family dinner.

"Well that would be a perk!" She grinned. "But no, seriously, I think mom really needs you right now. And...I do." She admitted, glancing at him. "You know dad hasn't called once?" She said quietly. "I know mom left him tons of messages but he's probably off travelling. I mean how crap is that? He's meant to be our dad but he would rather be out travelling with his mates."

"He's an idiot." Luke said, trying to contain his anger at the man.

"The one time I actually need him. The one time Rory needs him and he's not here. I mean, I'm not surprised but it still...it still hurts..." She sighed. "But you..." She said, glancing up at him. "You've been there for all of us. And I really need you right now. And I know mom needs you. So...will you come tonight? I promise I'll help you cook."

"You? Helping me cook?" Luke smiled slightly.

"Well you could teach me!" Olivia laughed slightly. "Please?" She asked softly.

"I'll be there." He smiled softly. "You can count on me, I promise."

"I know I can." Olivia smiled softly.

* * *

"So this was a spontaneous idea? You coming round to cook us dinner?" Lorelai asked as she, Luke, Jess, Rory and Olivia were sat round the table in the kitchen of the Crap Shack.

Luke glanced at Olivia who ducked her head slightly. "I just wanted to do something nice for you. I know it's been hard." He said.

Lorelai smiled softly. "That's really sweet."

"So what was this about Ben treating you today?" Jess asked Olivia.

"He planned this meal and everything." Olivia smiled slightly. "It was really sweet." She said softly.

"It was all him by the way. He came by with this whole plan." Luke said.

"He told me the food was your idea." Olivia said.

"Nah. He already knew what he wanted to make. He just asked if I could help." Luke shrugged.

"It was all his idea?" Olivia asked touched.

"He wanted you to feel special. He's a good kid." Luke said.

"Hey, praise indeed! Better than him beating up your boyfriend!" Lorelai joked.

"Luke beat up your boyfriend?" Rory asked.

"Oh..uh..no, not mine." Olivia said hesitating.

"Who's then?" She asked.

"Yours." Olivia said cautiously. "Well, your ex boyfriend." She said, glancing at her. "He'd broken up with you out of nowhere and you were devastated. He was trying to protect you." She said glancing over at Luke who ducked his head slightly, embarrassed. "He's always been there for us." She smiled at Rory.

"Oh...well, thanks...I guess." Rory smiled at Luke.

Luke gave him a small smile. "No big deal." He said.

"I've had these before." Rory said suddenly.

"Had what?" Lorelai asked.

"These mashed potatoes. When have I had these before?" Rory frowned, trying to think. "Wait, I was ill right?" She said glancing up to find everyone staring at her. "What? Am I wrong?" She asked.

"No hon, you're completely right." Lorelai smiled softly. "You remember that?"

"I..uh..Sort of..." Rory said, frowning, trying to think again. "I was...uh...I was ill in bed, I think. And I was eating these."

"You had chicken pox." Olivia said.

"I...I remember...I think." Rory said quietly. "God, those were hell." She said laughing slightly. She smiled when everyone else chuckled as well.

"Luke made you the mashed potatoes every day until you felt better. See, I told you he's always been there for us." Olivia smiled.

Rory smiled softly. "I...I remember something..." She said. "That's good right? I mean, I know it's small but I remember it. That's good, right?"

"It's great." Lorelai smiled softly, squeezing her arm. "It's really really great."

"I guess this meal was a good idea after all." Olivia smiled just as her cell rang. "Do you mind if I take this?" She asked.

"Go ahead, hon." Lorelai said.

Olivia took her cell and went into her room. "Ben, she remembered something! It was small but it was something! She's starting to remember!"

"That's great!" Ben said. "See, I told you!" He smiled.

"I know you did." She smiled. "I'm finally feeling like things are starting to get better. She's starting to remember..."

"That's really great." Ben smiled.

"Hey Ben?" Olivia said softly.

"Yeah?"

"I...I love you." She said. There was a silence and she cringed. "I'm sorry...Crap, it was too soon right?"

"No." Ben smiled softly. "I just...I didn't want to push you into saying that. I've felt it for a while now but I know you wanted to take it slow."

"I know. But...what you did today for me. How you've been there for me recently. I'm so lucky to have you. I...I love you." She said.

"I love you too." He said.

Olivia heard laughs out in the kitchen. "I better get back. But I'll see you tomorrow?"

"You bet." Ben smiled. "See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow." Olivia said before hanging up. She smiled giddily to herself before slowly heading back to the kitchen. Maybe things were really starting to look up.

 **I hope you liked it! :) Please keep the reviews coming as I love reading what you think! :) Thanks again for your support! :)**


	24. Chapter 24

**Thank you for your continued support! Hope you like this chapter! :)**

Chapter 24

Olivia was walking back home after spending time with Ben when she suddenly heard a familiar voice behind her. "You've got to be kidding me..." She said.

"Hey Liv, how's Rory doing?" Chris said running to catch up to her.

"Like you care." She snapped.

"What?" He said surprised.

"Mom and Rory had their accident three weeks ago! You're three weeks too late, dad." Olivia said angrily.

"I was busy..." Chris tried.

Olivia snorted. "Busy. Yeah sure." She said.

"Hey, I wanted to come. I was caught up with work!" He said.

"No, you weren't. You were just too scared to face the fact that your daughter suffered a serious injury and is still trying to recover." Olivia snapped.

"She's still having memory problems?" Chris asked shocked.

"Don't act all surprised! I know mom left you so many voicemails."

"Well yeah but...I thought..."

"You thought Rory would be fine now and that she would just be happy to see you. Well guess what dad, she won't even know who you are. She's still trying to piece everything together. Now I have to get home." She said storming off.

"Liv wait!" He called rushing after her.

* * *

Lorelai walked in from work and heard voices in the kitchen. Intrigued she walked quietly through the hallway and looked in. She smiled when she saw Luke teaching Rory how to cook burgers. "What's going on?" She asked.

"Luke's teaching me how to cook burgers." Rory smiled shyly at her.

"I can see that." She smiled.

"I feel like I've done this before. I just..." Rory said before sighing. "I can't remember." She said quietly.

"Well in this instance, I'm pretty sure you haven't done this before." Lorelai laughed. "You've got your cooking skills well lack of cooking skills from me." She joked.

Suddenly they were interrupted by shouting and Olivia storming through the house.

"Just leave me alone! I don't want to see you!" She shouted.

"Liv, come on!" Chris exclaimed but stopped when he saw Lorelai, Luke and Rory all staring at him.

"Chris..." Lorelai said stunned. "What are you doing here?"

"I..uh..I got your messages. I'm sorry I didn't come sooner..." He said.

"Sooner? You mean when our daughter was lying in a coma in hospital? When I was going out of my mind with worry?" Lorelai said angrily. "I mean, really Chris? You think we'd just be happy seeing you show up now?" She snapped.

"I thought..." Chris said, glancing over at Rory. "Hey kiddo..." He said softly.

"Don't you even talk to her." Olivia snapped reappearing. "She doesn't need you. I don't need you."

"I'm still your dad." He frowned.

"Yeah, some dad!" Olivia said angrily. "Where were you when we needed you, huh? My mom and sister were in hospital and I was so scared...I was so scared I was going to lose them both." She said her voice cracking. "I needed you, dad. The one time I actually needed you there. I needed you to tell me everything was going to be fine but you weren't there! I'm not even surprised anymore. You let us down the whole time."

"Liv..." Chris said quietly.

"Don't." She said shaking her head.

"You're our dad?" Rory spoke for the first time.

"Yeah. You remember?" Chris asked hopefully.

"I remember something..." She said frowning slightly. She glanced at Luke. "You have taught me how to make burgers before, haven't you?" She asked quietly. She nodded when she saw Luke nod. "I...remember...sort of. I was upset..." She said. She glanced at Chris. "I...I think it was father's day. You were meant to come and visit. I was...I was excited because I was going to show you the town. We both were, right?" She asked Olivia.

Olivia's head whipped up. "You remember our plans? Our plans together?" She asked.

"Well I'm assuming we were doing it together..." Rory said.

"Oh. Right." She said deflating a little bit.

"You didn't show up though." Rory said glancing at Chris. "I was upset and...and Luke cheered me up. He let me behind the counter..." She smiled slightly. "I was so excited because...because I knew mom was going to be so jealous."

Lorelai blinked back tears. "You bet I would have been." She said softly.

"You taught me how to flip a burger." Rory said quietly, glancing at Luke. "You're the one who has been here since the accident. I...I actually thought you were my dad for the first few days because you were always around. But then Olivia called you Luke and it confused me. But...I get it now."

"Rory..." Chris said quietly. "I...I'm sorry."

"I was scared. You're our dad. Apparently. Why weren't you there?" She asked quietly.

"I was..."

"You weren't working." Olivia shook her head. "You were travelling. You know I was really struggling the last couple of days and I tried calling you. It said you were out of the area. Which meant you were travelling, not working."

"Liv..."

"I hate you! Just get out! Get out!" She shouted.

"Liv, honey..." Lorelai said softly.

"No! Why are you defending him? You always defend him!" Olivia shouted. "I'm sick of it! I'm sick of everything! Why can't things go back to normal? Why can't my dad care about me? Why can't my sister remember who I am? Why is everything so screwed up?" She cried before rushing out of the house.

As she ran out, she bumped into a familiar figure.

"Liv?" Jess said taken aback by the state of her.

"Just leave me alone." She mumbled trying to wipe away some tears.

"Hey, what's wrong?" He asked softly.

"I said leave me alone!" She snapped pushing past him.

"Liv!" Jess said shocked.

"No! It's ok for you! She knows who you are. She knows everything about you. She feels safe with you and she enjoys being with you. Do you know how it feels to not have your own sister know who you are? To have her feel uncomfortable around you? Well I do and it sucks!" She cried. "It's ok for you! Just go inside. Be with Rory. I'll be fine." She sniffed starting to walk away.

"Ok, come on." He said.

"What?"

"We're going to get some coffee and we're going to sit down and talk." He said.

"But Rory..."

"Has Luke and your mom with her at the moment. She's fine." Jess said. "But I think you really need someone right now. And I'm here. Whether you like it or not."

Olivia sniffed and nodded. "Thank you." She said quietly.

* * *

"Wow..." Jess said. "I can't your dad would just show up like that. So long after...everything..."

"Well...that's our dad." Olivia sighed. "It did trigger another memory for Rory though so I guess it's not all bad..."

"Oh yeah?"

"Something about Luke cheering her up on a father's day." Olivia said.

"So...she seems to be remembering Luke..." Jess said carefully.

"Apparently." She nodded. She sighed. "I should be happy. I should be happy that she's starting to remember things but I can't help but wonder why she can't remember me rather than Luke..." She admitted. "Urgh, I'm so selfish!"

"No you're not." Jess assured her. "You're hurting. It's understandable."

"I miss her." Olivia admitted quietly. "I miss my sister."

"I know." He said softly. "If she's starting to remember Luke, it means she must remember you and mom soon. I know it. She's really trying."

"I know she is." She sighed. "I know she is." She said quietly. "I'm sorry. I guess things are just getting a bit on top of me." She admitted. "I didn't mean to take it out on you. I'm glad you've been there for Rory. I'm glad she has you."

"Hey, you have me too." Jess said softly. "Anytime you need to talk, I'm here. Anytime you need to vent, I'm here. Anytime you need to punch someone, hey I'm here for that too." He joked.

Olivia smiled slightly. "I might hold you to that." She smirked. "Thanks Jess." She said softly.

"Rory will get better. It just...might take some time." He said.

Olivia nodded. "I know." She said.

"So...walk you back home?" He offered.

"Sure." She nodded. "Thanks."

* * *

Olivia and Jess walked back into the Crap Shack. They found Lorelai and Luke sat in the living room. "Is dad gone?" Olivia asked quietly.

"Yeah, he's gone." Lorelai said.

"Good." Olivia said.

Lorelai sighed. "Why didn't you tell me how much you were hurting?" She asked softly.

"You were hurting too." Olivia said quietly. "I didn't want to burden you..."

"Oh hon..." Lorelai said getting up and pulling her into a hug. "You could never burden me. Ever."

"I'm sorry I shouted at you. I just..."

"It's ok." She assured her.

"Where's Rory?" Olivia asked.

"In your room." She said.

"I think I might go talk to her."

"Ok. Luke's going to finish making dinner and then we thought we might all watch a movie. You up for that?" Lorelai asked.

Olivia smiled. "Sure." She nodded. "I'll be back."

"Ok hon." She said.

Olivia walked to her bedroom. She took a deep breath before going in. She found Rory sat on Rory's bed, looking through a photo album. "Hey..." She said.

Rory looked up and gave her a small smile. "Hey." She said.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"Trying to remember." Rory admitted. "I thought this might help..."

Olivia went and sat down next to her. "I haven't looked through this for ages." She said.

Rory glanced at her. "So that was our dad huh?" She asked.

Olivia sighed. "The one and only."

"Wow..." Rory said.

"Yep."

Rory sighed and looked back at the photo album. "Was this a party?" She asked pointing to a photo.

Olivia smiled and nodded. "Our 8th birthday party. It was a great one. Mom is great at parties."

Rory smiled as she looked through the photos of that party. "Looked like a fun party."

"It was." Olivia smiled softly.

"Jess was there..." She said spotting him in one of the photos. "Oh...and Luke..."

"Yeah...mom's great at getting Luke to come to our parties." Olivia smiled. "He...was always there."

Rory smiled. "Our 8th birthday party..." She said quietly. She frowned slightly.

"What's up?" Olivia asked.

"I don't know. I just...I feel like that was a big one..." She said.

"Oh...well, it was. A lot happened." She said. "The cops shut us down." She smirked slightly.

"Really?" Rory laughed slightly. "Wow..." She said. She was quiet for a moment. "Why?"

"Well...a lot happened. But it ended with the clown..." Olivia said.

"Being arrested..." Rory said.

Olivia glanced at her in surprised. "Yeah..."

Rory laughed slightly. "I don't know what made me remember that..."

"But you really do? Remember it?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah, I really do." Rory smiled softly at her. "And we sang the macarena at that party as well."

Olivia laughed as tears welled up in her eyes. "Yeah. Yeah we did."

Rory wiped some tears from her eyes as well, smiling softly at Olivia before slowly looking back at the photo album. "So...what else do we have in here?"

 **I hope you liked it! Please keep the reviews coming as I love reading what you all think! :) I really do appreciate all your support so thank you! :)**


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